South West Autumn Statement preview

Corporation tax, at its current level, is putting countless businesses through the meat grinder. After the struggles of Covid, which claimed so many businesses and took many more to the brink, it's leaving a very bitter taste in the mouth. This Government needs the economy to start firing but it is doing little to support the typical SME, which is the backbone of the economy. The current tax regime is so punitive for small business owners that the profits you do make are immediately swallowed up. There's little left to reinvest, expand, hire staff and grow, which is what the economy needs. Whatever's announced in the Autumn Statement is likely to be short-lived anyway as the Tories have a mountain to climb if they're going to win the General Election. Of course, whoever wins, it will just be one set of clowns being replaced by another.

Here in the heart of Bristol, charities like ours are the unsung heroes, weaving essential support into the fabric of our communities. Imagine the ripple effect if the Chancellor's speech in the Autumn Statement could provide some form of support for these local champions. We're the underdogs making a colossal impact on a shoestring budget, powered by an army of dedicated volunteers. It's about time this invaluable resilience gets the recognition and backing it truly deserves. Without this crucial funding lifeline, many of these small charities, the backbone of our communities, teeter on the brink, risking closure and leaving countless vulnerable families without the vital support they so desperately rely on. Let's hope the Chancellor delivers for the third sector.

We wait with some anticipation what's likely to be one of the last rolls of the Tory dice. With Corporation Tax presently standing as the Government's fourth-largest revenue source, the recent surge in rates from 19% to 25% dampened any optimism within the business sector. However, with the latest inflation figures surprisingly better than expected, it does give the Chancellor a little more wriggle room. I would hope that while businesses are paying higher levels of taxes, other means are introduced to boost productivity, encourage investment and support economic growth. Targeted relief like a reduction in VAT for specific struggling sectors like hospitality, which in turn would boost spending and not be a major source of lost revenue for the Chancellor, could be one way of achieving this. However, while the inflation tight-rope continues to be navigated, I expect this will be limited.

I'd like the Chancellor to reform the archaic business rates system. It's turning our high streets into a wasteland of empty shops and hollowing out communities. It hands a huge advantage to the megalithic corporates that operate online and pay taxes offshore - we need a fair tax system fit for the 21st century.

The main thing businesses need right now is stability, which we haven't had for at least five years. Whatever national policies are announced could be ditched by the next general election, so I'd like to see more funding and powers devolved to regions such as the South West to support businesses, and especially nurture start-ups.

Bringing back the Help to Buy scheme or introducing a new equivalent incentive to help assist with first-time buyer affordability would be firmly top of most mortgage brokers' wishlists. According to a recent stat, first-time buyer mortgage payments now account for 39% of people's salary. They are crying out for help to get on the ladder, and whilst rates remain so high with much-increased mortgage payments, an interest-free Government loan for a defined period, to boost their deposit, would really help this demographic. Not only to be able to afford to buy; but also to ensure the mortgage payments are affordable in a high rate environment too - if only then paying the mortgage on a much lower borrowing amount for a set period, until mortgage rates drop to a more affordable level in the next few years.