1. business and industrial

Weekly Brief - Friday 13 February 2015
Paternity leave
This was one of the most talked-about stories this week, which followed the Labour Party’s
announcement that they would increase paternity leave to four weeks if elected in May. The FSB
warned that this might be a confusing change for small firms, and our comments were met with
considerable media interest. Interviews with Mike Cherry featured in over 49 broadcast outlets,
including BBC News and ITV News. Our comment was also picked up in national print titles such as
the Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail and Daily Mirror.
Minimum wage
Commenting on a Times poll that showed 80 per cent of voters would like the minimum wage to rise,
the FSB called on the Government to listen to the views of the Low Pay Commission before making
any changes.
Help to Grow
David Cameron’s announcement of a £100m pilot fund to help small businesses grow was welcomed
by the FSB, whose comment appeared in the Daily Telegraph. The new finance will be given to the
British Business Bank, to channel towards 500 companies looking to expand from small to be medium
sized firms.
SME finance
The Financial Times reported in an opinion piece that high street banks need support from the
Government in order to lend more to small businesses. This report included FSB statistics, which
showed 22 per cent of businesses see lack of finance as a barrier to growth.
Business support
The FSB released a report on Wednesday, detailing recommendations for LEPs on the way business
support is delivered in their regions. The report found that regional growth could be accelerated by
reducing duplication and inefficiency within the local systems. The report was covered online on
Economia and BQ Live.
Work experience
A report by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills found that 80 per cent of businesses do
not plan to take on a young person for work experience in the near future. In response, the FSB called
for more effort to be made in forging links between education and the workplace.
Social Value Act
The Government has published a review into the Social Value act, which assesses the value added to
the community by local authority procurement decisions. The FSB welcomed the review, and
commented that local authorities must recognise the great benefits of investing in small businesses.
Parliamentary update
John Allan, National Chairman of the FSB, and Mike Cherry, National Policy Chairman of the FSB,
met with key Ministers in order to discuss the FSB’s priorities ahead of the 2015 budget.
Mike Cherry attended a roundtable with the Skills Minister at 10 Downing Street on apprenticeship
reform.
During a House of Commons debate on the Compulsory Jobs Guarantee Labour’s Shadow
Employment Minister Stephen Timms MP said FSB Wales were a champion of the scheme.
During a House of Lords debate on Financial Services Labour Peer Lord Soley discussed the
importance of the FSB and small businesses being appropriately consulted ahead of any relevant
regulations being transposed from the European Union.
Parliament is now in recess with both the House of Commons and the House of Lords returning on 23
February.
#ibacksmallbusiness
Graeme Fisher and Craig Beaumont of the FSB met with both the Labour Party and the Conservative
Party to discuss the FSB manifesto. They discussed key issues addressed under the
#ibacksmallbusiness campaign.
Voluntary Lending Code
Members are invited to send their thoughts on how the Voluntary Lending Code should be changed to
benefit customers to erin.flood@fsb.org.uk by 28 February 2015. The Lending Code sets standards
for financial institutions including debt collection and debt purchase firms to follow when they are
dealing with their personal and small business customers in the United Kingdom.
Small Business Bill
The FSB responded to consultations with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on how
the Small Business Bill should implement (a) the requirements on businesses to report on their
payment practices and (b) the ban on nullifying invoice assignment. The FSB’s recommendations on
the Small Business Bill can be found in the manifesto.
HMRC
The FSB met with HM Revenue and Customs and other stakeholders to discuss how the
administrative burden caused by cross-border VAT rules can be reduced for small businesses. The
FSB has produced comment and guidance on cross-border VAT on its website. Please also see the
FSB’s response to the Public Consultation on the Free Movement of Goods in 2013.