Candidates in the upcoming local elections have been called upon to ‘keep small businesses at the forefront of their policy and manifesto planning’.
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has drawn up its own manifesto for the elections, which are to be held on May 3 in England and Scotland.
The organisation said it wanted to ‘ensure that council candidates can manage local government in a way that will defend small employers’ in their area, and outlines how council decisions impact on small firms.
“Decisions taken by local authorities have a direct impact on everybody’s lives, including the livelihoods of small business owners and their employees,” said Roger Culcheth, FSB local government chairman.
“In some areas local authorities and businesses have a close and effective relationship but in others small employers are treated as silent taxpayers with little voice in the future of their community.
“This is precisely why the FSB does not support any move to re-localise the setting of business rates.”
The organisation is recommending a number of measures to local election candidates including less aggregation of public procurement contracts and more accountability on e-procurement.
The FSB is also calling for better reflection of small business needs when it comes to development planning, through improvements to the planning application process.
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