Department for Business and Trade should:
- Build on the best of both departments, providing new dedicated resources to help small businesses access trade deals and delivering swift new action on late payment following the Small Business Ministers recent consultation launch.
- Tackle barriers to business, focusing on trade deals abroad and applying the British Columbia model of regulatory reform to domestic regulation to reduce small business paperwork
- Drive entrepreneurship as a solution to wider policy challenges, including setting a target for 100,000 new disabled entrepreneurs and as a route to help more over 50s participate in the labour market
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology should:
- Reverse the recent anti-enterprise, anti-engineering, anti-challenger bias in UK innovation policy, exemplified by the decision to slash r&d tax credits
- Reform UKRI and Innovate UK’s spending to incentivise entrepreneurship and change university employment practices that discourage spin-outs
- Focus on tech adoption as well as new technology, to speed the spread of new technologies and make sure innovation has rapid economic impact
Department for Energy, Security and Net Zero should:
- Create a new ‘Help to Green’ programme to promote net zero investments that help small companies save on energy
- Provide proper protection to micro businesses in the energy market, including establishing a new 14 day cooling-off period
- Make sure the most vulnerable businesses to renegotiate or ‘blend and extend’ their energy contracts following the upheaval in prices this year
Department for Culture, Media and Sport should:
- Focus on small venues and other businesses hard hit by the pandemic, and make sure self-employed creatives are central to policy development
- Deliver the broadband businesses need now and get rid of the mobile not-spots that blight businesses ability to operate in some of our most in need communities.
- Help make sport and exercise a reality for all, including by making sure cycle to work is available to the self-employed
Responding to today’s reshuffle announcement, FSB Policy Chair Tina McKenzie said: “On behalf of the UK’s small business community, I welcome the new Cabinet into their new posts.
“They join at a critical time for the economy and with a joint, concerted effort, they have a real opportunity to bring stability back to the economy.
“It has been a real pleasure to work with Grant, Kemi, Michelle and Lucy in the past, and we look forward to continuing that relationship with these new and refocused departments.
“Done right, today’s changes can help drive action that will help propel UK productivity and put small businesses on the front and centre of ministers’ minds when making economic decisions.
“Done wrong, and they create huge amounts of uncertainty for civil servants, with no gain for the future. There are many in-tray items that are now incredibly urgent.
“The key for Ministers new in role and for new departments will be delivering on Day 1. Small business priorities are clear, and we look forward to working with new Ministers to deliver change that’s felt on the ground today.”
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About FSB
As the UK’s largest business support group, FSB is the voice of the UK’s small businesses and the self-employed. Established over 40 years ago to help its members succeed in business, FSB is a non-profit making and non-party political organisation that’s led by its members, for its members. As the UK’s leading business campaigner, FSB is focused on delivering change which supports smaller businesses to grow and succeed.
FSB offers members a wide range of vital business services, including access to finance, business banking, legal advice and support along with a powerful voice in Government. Each year FSB also runs the UK’s Celebrating Small Business Awards. More information is available at www.fsb.org.uk. You can follow us on twitter @fsb_policy and on Instagram @fsb_uk.