Spring Statement - small business wishlist

"Fuel duty freezes and policies to tackle labour shortages and help mobilise global supply chains are a must for this week’s Spring Statement. A decision to reverse or delay the planned increase to National Insurance would give businesses some scope to increase wages to accommodate the cost of living crisis. But this alone would barely scratch the surface. Inflation is at a 30-year high, interest rates are rising and fuel and energy prices are soaring. This is enough to force some businesses to shut up shop, particularly those in manufacturing, construction, food and beverages, automotive, and farming and agriculture, who are suffering terribly from supply chain disruption. They urgently need access to a stable and affordable solution. A long-term strategy to tackle labour shortages has been severely lacking from the Government; it needs to share with businesses its plan for the future of the UK’s workforce, both in terms of its size and skills. One of the largest pressure points for the Government is the rising costs of fuel and energy crisis. This will have a widespread impact throughout 2022, but the consequences will be far greater than increased bills. Without financial aid, the economy will suffer as businesses find themselves unable to invest in new markets, new equipment and new skills."

"There are three things I think the Chancellor should do. First, implement a windfall tax on the North Sea oil and gas companies. They are making enormous profits off the back of soaring energy prices, which could cost the average consumer £3,000 a year by late 2022. In these extraordinary circumstances, when people are having to choose between heating or eating, a windfall tax is the obvious and right thing to do. Unsurprisingly, Sunak seems ideologically averse to the idea, but ideology isn't going to keep people warm and fed next winter. Second, I'd ban the purchase of UK properties by foreign investors unless they plan to reside in the UK full-time. And third, I'd make it prohibitively expensive through higher stamp and/or capital gains tax to buy a second property or holiday home. It really needs to be discouraged, as it ends up pricing out local residents from having the chance to buy somewhere to live."

"It's a complete shambles. The Government are saying they are out to help small businesses and are doing everything they can, and then in the next breath, adding, "Oh well, somebody has to pay for the costs of the pandemic". The small business owners I know, myself included, are being squeezed in business and squeezed personally, and when you realise how much small businesses contribute economically and socially to communities, you wonder why they are so easy to ignore. What I can say is that there are plenty of bigger organisations who have both control or protection from the forces that be, and maybe it's time for the government to stop promising and actually deliver something that makes a real difference to small businesses, rather than offering a sprinkle of frosting as our cake gets mouldier by the day."

''Rishi Sunak needs to urgently step in to stop the energy vultures crippling businesses further. Our electricity bill has now tripled at our commercial unit and if the Chancellor doesn't step in, bills are set to rise again in October. We didn't want to jump on the bandwagon and increase our prices, but faced with reality, the increased costs in food, fuel, wages and energy, have left us with no choice. Recent increases in bookings for our catering business are simply being eaten up in the wrong way.''

"Ideally, I would like the Chancellor to postpone the National Insurance rise but, given that's unlikely to happen, to increase the threshold at which National Insurance begins to be paid, to truly help the lower paid. There is also an opportunity for the Chancellor to be really radical and lower VAT to 15% across the board for a limited period of time, say 6 months, to really give the economy a boost and lower fuel prices in one hit."

"With mortgage rates increasing, a great way to keep the housing market strong would be a reform on stamp duty. When this was amended during Covid, it kept demand strong and helped a lot of people to move. I would personally like the Government to scrap the 3% surcharge for additional properties and potentially reduce it for larger purchases. Anything above £1.5m is charged at 12%, which is very significant when you consider a lot more properties are now valued above this level. It's no longer just mansions but many areas of London where normal families are purchasing a terraced house."

"The Chancellor has a near impossible job to do, namely cover the cost of the Government’s spending in light of the pandemic and ongoing crisis internationally and at home. Perhaps the government can show its support by reducing fuel duty and VAT on fuel, to make it cheaper. It could also increase the nil-rate band on inheritance so many wouldn’t need to incur those extra death duties. They could even look to increase the tax-free allowance but that would really be pushing it. Another area of potential benefit, would be to allow for the purchase of residential properties within SSAS and SIPP pensions, instead of needing to use convoluted expensive structures to get around this. Being able to buy residential investment properties within our pensions, which are generally cheaper and more profitable, would allow people to build a larger pot to support themselves in retirement. And that's what the Government needs, people supporting themselves. Something I’ve also been thinking about for a long time relates to tax brackets as a whole. Right now there is not much motivation to push upwards in income for many people, for fear of the 40% and 45% rates. So they stay in jobs up to £50,270 to stay on that 20% bracket. It’s not particularly motivating for entrepreneurs either. Perhaps instead of punishing those who want to grow, we reward them with a progressive-regressive tax scale, e.g. over £300,000 it drops to 40%, over £500,000 to 30% and over £1,000,000 it drops to 20% etc. Now it’s certainly not amounts most of us will make in our lifetime, but it may just push more people to aim for the sky, and it would also mean those that are earning such high amounts won’t need to go to the effort of concealing it, moving it offshore, or moving overseas. That additional income flowing into No. 11 might just help provide for those at the bottom of the scale."