Ahead of the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget on November 22,
the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) is urging the government
to take immediate action to halt the expected 3.9% increase in
business rates valuations next year, as part of a bold Budget
that seeks to boost the UK’s productivity.
The UK’s leading business group, which represents almost 75,000
companies employing almost six million people in every region and
nation of the UK, calls on the Chancellor to take action now to
get the UK economy ready for when the country leaves the European
Union.
The BCC proposes pausing the Corporation Tax roadmap, with the
tax remaining at 19% until after Brexit - with the resulting
revenue ring-fenced to help ease the burden of up-front taxes and
costs that hit business cash flow and undermine investment.
The BCC calls on the government to take bold action across three
key areas, to help businesses deal with the challenges and
opportunities that Brexit provides, kickstart a productivity
surge, and ensure that the domestic economy is in the best
possible position on day one of leaving the EU:
-
Tackling the upfront cost of
doing business – pledging not to introduce any
more input taxes and other significant
costs, abandoning the annual uprating of business
rates for the next two years, and removing plant and
machinery from business rates valuations.
-
Incentivise business investment during the Brexit
process – through the introduction of a ‘Brexit
Special’ Annual Investment Allowance, temporarily
increasing the limit to £1 million.
-
Fixing the fundamentals – committing to
ensuring complete voice coverage on mobiles by 2020, and
kickstarting infrastructure projects vital to our economic
future, from Northern Powerhouse rail and
Crossrail 2, to bringing forward investment in the road
network.
Dr Adam Marshall, Director General of the British
Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
“At a critical moment for the UK economy, the Chancellor must be
bold - and deliver a big budget that prioritises economic
confidence and investment.
“The best possible Brexit deal won’t be worth the paper it’s
written on if conditions for growth aren’t right here at home.
The Chancellor has a unique chance to move the dial on growth and
productivity now, leaving the UK in a position to succeed over
the long term. Action to slash the up-front costs faced by
business, to incentivise investment, and to improve mobile
coverage and infrastructure would lead to a real boost to
productivity, wages and trade.
“A Budget that prioritises goodies and giveaways rather than
future-proofing the economy would be a dereliction of duty by the
government as a whole.”
On business rates:
“It would be unconscionable for the government to use September’s
inflation figures to slam businesses with a huge rise in rates,
particularly when they already face spiralling up-front costs. A
failure to act would hit the high street, manufacturers and
others hard - and undermine the sort of investment we need to
boost productivity.”
On investment:
“Too many companies are playing a wait-and-see game at the
moment. We need a big, bold incentive to get more firms investing
- particularly ahead of the Brexit transition.”
On infrastructure:
“A sugar hit for voters would quickly fade, but the protein boost
provided by increased investment in infrastructure and digital
connectivity would be felt for decades. Ramping up infrastructure
investment across all regions and nations of the UK, and getting
long-planned projects off the drawing board, gives a huge boost
to business confidence and creates both jobs and business
opportunities.”
