Chamber welcomes Government's Small Business Strategy expected measures but calls for changes to reporting requirements

The East Midlands Chamber has ‘broadly welcomed’ measures likely to be included in the government’s Small Business Strategy but called for small and micro-sized firms to be exempt from expected changes to reporting obligations.

Due to be published in July, the Small Business Strategy follows on from the Industrial Strategy and is expected to outline greater access to finance, policies to tackle late payment and streamlined access to business support. More detailed reporting of areas like profit and loss could be required, as outlined in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act. 

East Midlands Chamber Director of Policy and Insight Richard Blackmore said: “Any supportive measures included in the Small Business Strategy that make trade simpler or enable growth I’d broadly welcome. Access to finance and government support, addressing late payment and removal of unnecessary red tape would be a huge help to small businesses, especially at a time when the high cost of doing business is an ongoing challenge. 

“The detail in the Strategy remains to be seen and it’s important that anything that could be a burden to small and micro businesses - like making reporting requirements more complex for businesses with a low turnover and head count, as laid out in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act – aren’t progressed in the Small Business Strategy.  

"Smaller businesses should be exempt as adding extra paperwork to trawl through and any associated costs would inhibit, not enable growth for those with a handful of staff. The Small Business Strategy must make day-to-day trade a simple for small businesses and I’d urge the Department for Business and Trade to ensure that.”