As Bullingdon Club chancellor George Osborne announced the 2014 budget yesterday, we thought it might be wise to highlight some of the new measures put in place and draw attention to some issues the British government appears to be overlooking at this most volatile of times for small and medium sized businesses. Last year they introduced a waiver of business rates, and this made it possible for hundreds of thousands of people to act on their entrepreneurial spirit, quit their jobs and start their own firms. The main problem is, should these rates make a comeback appearance any time soon, those new businesses could go under.
Thankfully, it seems small businesses under a certain size will still be able to refrain from paying their business rates for the time being, and this news will be warmly welcomed by all those who’ve made the leap over the last twelve months. Of course, we’re all used to being let down by politicians, and so we should probably expect them to do something in the near future to make life more difficult for business owners. Often, it’s expenses like debt recovery that put the most strain on new firms, and if this is a new concept to you, you can find out more on this website.
In a recent interview with the Guardian newspaper, Prime Minister David Cameron was quoted as saying:
“Look, we are attempting to create growth during the tail end of one of the most devastating financial collapses in history. Had we not bailed out the banks with public money, neither you or I would even be sitting here doing this interview today. There is no doubt in my mind the chancellor will be working hard to close tax loopholes and provide new companies with a fighting chance. Yes, it’s certainly true business rates will come back for new firms at some point in the future, but we plan to hold that off for as long as possible to allow people to reach a stable level where they can afford these payments without risking their livelihood.”
So let’s have a quick look at some of the announcements made in yesterday’s budget…
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Easing trade restrictions – There are many countries in the world in which British people are unable to trade because of high import and export charges. George Osborne has pledged to spend 3 million pounds on reducing these fees to open up new markets.
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Tax breaks for new equipment – The chancellor has also promised to deliver a series of tax breaks for new businesses buying equipment essential for their growth.
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Increased business lending – The government already backs a number of different schemes designed to encourage banks to loan money to new startups, but as announced yesterday, the funding for these projects will continue to increase.
So, in answering the question posed in the title of this article “will the UK government do enough for small businesses this year?”, we must conclude “probably not”. However, they are making a few changes that could make a difference, so it’s not all bad.
Will they manage to hold off business rates long enough for new companies to prosper? Or will they hit everyone with a huge bill at the most inappropriate and inconvenient time? That remains to be seen.
