Here is this week’s news round-up for home business, micro business, sole-traders, freelancers, self-employed and any one who is interested in small business news from the United Kingdom and Ireland:
- Business lobby group respond to Treasury Committee’s review of Pre-Budget Report: The FPB is welcoming the Treasury Committee’s call for the Government to continually review its measures designed to increase bank lending to small businesses.
- The Anderson Review: impose fewer regulations rather than replicating existing support, says business lobby group: Following a review of regulations imposed on small businesses, the Government is considering creating a ‘one stop shop’ for advice on health and safety, and employment law. The FPB believes that expert support and information is already provided by the private sector, and is calling on the Government to focus on implementing proposed regulatory budgets within individual departments without delay.
- Poor official advice costs SMEs £800m: Official guidance designed to help small businesses is so poor that it deters many firms from seeking help and actually costs them money, a new report will claim this week
- How ‘lifestyle’ businesses are beating the recession: The recession has hit small businesses hard, but there are encouraging signs that many firms are bucking the trend by continuing to grow
- WinWeb Launches Australian Version of OnlineOffice.: Today we release the Australian version for OnlineOffice’5. Anyone signing up to OnlineOffice choosing ‘Australia’ as their home country will automatically be assigned to the Australian version of our accounting module, invoicing, quotation and online shop modules.
- Council run ‘banks’ set to begin: Two English local authorities say they are close to launching their own “banks” to help local small businesses.
- Small-business employers have just a month left to apply for National Apprenticeship Awards:Few employers, with the exception of manufacturers and skilled trades, consider taking on apprentices. There are 4.7 million small businesses in the UK, but, according to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), which is holding its National Apprenticeship Awards on 27 February 2009, only 130,000 companies offer apprenticeships. The Forum of Private Business (FPB) is urging entrepreneurs across all industry sectors to consider whether apprenticeships can benefit their businesses.
- Small businesses must have a say on how taxes are spent: The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has expressed concern that the Business Rate Supplements Bill will impose extra tax burdens on businesses and has suggested a series of amendments to soften the blow of the legislation.
- Unemployment fears rise in small businesses as the country slides into recession: The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) reported a dramatic rise in calls to its legal advice line on redundancies from concerned small businesses, on the same day as the official announcement that the UK is in recession.
- Small companies fear recession will last up to 2 years: The average small business owner predicts that the recession will last for just under two years, according to a recent survey. However, most SMEs are bullish about their survival.
As always this list is not exhaustive, but I hope it will give you a little overview. — ST.
