Gordon Brown has been called upon to ‘ease the tax burden’ on the UK’s smallest businesses ahead of his pre-budget speech in December.
The Forum of Private Business (FPB) has drawn up a ‘wish list’ of requests for the Chancellor which it says would ‘promote productivity, competitiveness and employment for the UK economy’.
Top of the list is the return of the nil-rate starting band on corporation tax for the first £10,000 of profits.
“Thousands of micro businesses now face an extra bill of up to £1,900 a year because of the change announced in the last pre-Budget speech,” said Nick Goulding, chief executive of the FPB.
“Bringing it back would encourage thousands of sole traders and partnerships to set up limited companies, as it did in 2002 when it was introduced.”
To make up for the shortfall, the FSB has suggested the Chancellor should close the £80m tax loophole by which some goods imported from the Channel Islands receive VAT relief.
The organisation has also called for a simplification of the VAT registration process, a slowing in the increase of the minimum wage, and a percentage of government contracts to be reserved for small firms.
Also in the ‘wish list’ was a call for smaller businesses to be given more say in how skills sector councils devise skills initiatives.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2006
