The Business and Trade Committee dives into the big issues impeding UK small business in the national drive to raise rates of economic growth, increase disposable income and close regional inequalities.
Meeting details
Rt Hon Liam Byrne MP, Chair of the Committee, said:
“Britain’s small businesses are the backbone of our economy — yet too many are being broken by taxes, energy costs and crime. These are not abstract problems but the daily challenges on our high streets and business parks; in our pubs, cafes, workshops and factories.
“Our Committee will put those with power side-by-side with those paying the price - because we need answers, not excuses; solutions, not stalemate. A country that works must be a country where small business thrives.”
Across three panels the Committee will set the authority or organisation responsible for each issue next to a representative of the group affected by it, in a head-to-head discussion to tease out the factors driving each problem, analyse its impact and focus on where solutions can be found.
HMRC will engage with experts on the impact of small business taxes at the CBI. EON and industry group Energy UK will sit alongside Citizens Advice experts who help SMEs deal with the sharp end of energy costs that are among the highest in the world. High street retailers will describe the experience of record levels of shoplifting alongside the City of London Police charged with stopping it.
The Committee will put evidence it has heard in each case to these key stakeholders - sharp sales and debt collection practices in the energy industry; falling compliance with small business tax as complaints about HMRC’s customer service grow; successful schemes to stop street crime that aren’t being rolled out to address a worsening, nationwide problem –and begin to tease out the common ground and find ways forward.