We’ve are all waking up to a new Government today, with the Labour party about to take control of the country and what should be top of your mind as you get to the office are what the Labour small business plans mean for you.
The Labour Small Business Agenda includes plans to introduce new legislation and regulatory reforms which they claim are designed to significantly benefit small businesses. Here are the main Labour small business policies that they were elected on:
Small Business Exports & BREXIT
In the Labour Small Business Agenda, they say that they will work alongside the Federation of Small Business on a Small Business Export Taskforce, which will look at practical ways they can remove the barriers to exports for firms of all sizes and improve guidance to make exporting easier.
Part of this is that, while Labour are clear that our future lies outside of the customs union, they say that they will make Brexit work by improving on current deal when the Trade and Cooperation Agreement renewal period comes in 2025.
Digital Services Tax
While the LibDems still want to increase the Digital Services Tax on social media firms and other tech giants from 2% to 6%, thankfully Labour scrapped this policy. We all know only to well that when the likes of Amazon get taxed they simply pass the cost on to small businesses to pay.
Scrap small business rates for a fairer system
Labour have commited to scrap the current business rates system and replace it with a system of business property taxation they say is fit for the 21st century. Their new system will reduce the burden on high streets and support small businesses’ ambitions to grow and to move into empty premises, rather than standing in the way of entrepreneurship.
This could be a double edged sword for online only businesses that don’t operate on the high street, so we’ll wait to see if it means a tax hike for ecommerce.
High Street policies
Labour say that they will tackle anti-social behaviour by introducing new town centre police patrols and a mandatory antisocial behaviour police lead for every local neighbourhood – Great news for shop owners, but won’t impact pureplay ecommerce businesses.
However if you do want to open a shop, Labour say that they will revamp empty shops by giving councils new powers to take over empty shops and reopen them without consent from the property’s owners. Councils will be given the power to secure management rights, carry out works and put the property to use, with rent revenues being directed back to the owner. The premises would be offered to local small business for a discounted rent.
Legislate to tackle late payments
Labour will legislate to require the audit committees of big businesses to report on their company’s payment practices in the company annual report. This, they say, will increase transparency for small businesses engaging with potential future customers and will also build awareness within the businesses themselves of poor standards.
Start-up & Scale up
Labour say that their plans will unlock the supply of patient capital for technology-intensive, early stage businesses ensuring that institutional investors and VCs are best placed to invest alongside the British Business Bank. Labour also intend to reform the British Business Bank to give it a more ambitious remit, helping it better support SMEs and giving it a stronger mandate to support regional growth.
SME representation on public contracts
Labour’s National Procurement Plan aims to give small and medium businesses fairer opportunities to benefit from public contract bidding. They will require that at least one SME makes the shortlist when any smaller, suitable contract goes out to tender.
Energy
Labour’s mission to make the UK a clean energy superpower will cut bills for small businesses, create commercial opportunities for them and deliver security with a cheaper, zero-carbon electricity system by 2030. They say that their plans plans will ensure small manufacturers are no longer held back by sky-high energy bills and end the competitive disadvantage with European firms.
While Labour say that British small businesses will play a vital role in supply chains creating up to 300,000 jobs, this is unlikely to immediately impact ecommerce businesses.
Skills
Labour say that they will address skills shortages head on by creating Skills England to bring partners together in developing plans to meet the skills needs of the next decade.
Labour say that they will revamp the Apprenticeship Levy with a new Growth and Skills Levy to give businesses greater flexibility. They will continue to cover 95% of costs for non-levy payers protecting apprenticeship starts in small businesses.
Building
Labour say that they will reform the planning system to build 1.5 million homes over the Parliament, creating opportunities and orders for small builders and tradespeople across the country. They say that they will strengthen planning capacity by hiring more than 300 new planners across the public sector to expedite decisions.
While this might not help your small business directly, it might help you and your employees find somewhere affordable and semi-decent to live!
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