Close Menu
  • News
  • Home
  • In Profile
  • Finance
  • Legal
  • Technology
  • Events
  • Features
  • Wellbeing & Mental Health
  • Marketing
  • HR & Recruitment
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Events Calendar
  • Business Wall
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • 0843 289 4634
X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
Trending
  • New Venture Aims To Help Propel Growth For Start-Ups
  • Building community, one cause at a time
  • How to build a £1 million pension and ISA portfolio
  • 5 Reasons Why Every Office Should Include Flexible Spaces to Work and Their Key Benefits
  • Pension reforms risk higher prices, fewer jobs and slower growth, FSB warns
  • Building Trust in AI Through a Decision-Centric Approach in Manufacturing
  • In Profile: Michael Stausholm, founder and CEO of SproutWorld
  • A beginner’s guide to growth shares (and why they’re so popular right now)
X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
SME Today
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Events Calendar
  • Business Wall
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • 0843 289 4634
  • News
  • Home
  • In Profile
  • Finance
  • Legal
  • Technology
  • Events
  • Features
  • Wellbeing
  • Marketing
  • HR & Recruitment
SME Today
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Events Calendar
  • Business Wall
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • 0843 289 4634
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
You are at:Home»News»Dreary July GDP figure sparks renewed calls for small business support in Autumn Statement

Dreary July GDP figure sparks renewed calls for small business support in Autumn Statement

0
Posted By sme-admin on September 22, 2023 Finance, News

Responding to Office for National Statistics figures showing that GDP fell by 0.5% in July 2023 compared with the previous month, Martin McTague, National Chair of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), said: 

“This fall in GDP will come as little surprise for small businesses, who have endured uncertain trading conditions over a summer marked by poor weather and still-high levels of inflation.

“It is disheartening to see a fall in the three main sectors of services, construction, and production, with the fall in services especially eye-catching due to the dominance of the service sector in the UK economy.

“The steady increase in interest rates has tightened the screw for many small firms, with many reporting consumer spending contracting as a result, and with firms carrying index-linked debts seeing their repayments rise and rise, hitting their margins.

“This indication that the economy contracted at the start of the third quarter will dampen hopes of a more optimistic finding in small business confidence levels, which stalled in the second quarter following a large improvement at the start of the year.

“Our research also found that confidence levels and revenue growth were drastically different between sectors, with small firms in retail and hospitality notably more pessimistic than professional, scientific and technical businesses, for example. These disparities should be kept in mind so that firms in areas or sectors where growth is less forthcoming are not left out of sight, out of mind.

“Looking forward, falling demand for goods and services and inflation are seen as key challenges for small firms, and we can’t forget that energy bills are still far higher than they were 18 months ago.

“Given the falls in all three main sectors, the Autumn Statement will be a watershed moment for the Government in terms of proving its small business support credentials. A significant step would be to tackle late payments once and for all. Outstanding invoices hold back both growth and stability for businesses, and we will be looking for concrete steps to stamp out this scourge in the forthcoming response to a Government consultation on the topic.

“Another way to encourage growth among small businesses would be to act to lighten the burden of business rates. We would like to see the discount for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses extended for another year, and the Small Business Rate Relief threshold raised from £12,000 to £25,000. Reducing the rates burden would work as a motivating factor to re-energise the entrepreneurial spirit that’s so important in a healthy economy.

“Raising the VAT threshold from £85,000 to £100,000 could also spare both businesses and consumers from the double jeopardy of rising prices and taxes.”

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

Related Posts

New Venture Aims To Help Propel Growth For Start-Ups

How to build a £1 million pension and ISA portfolio

Pension reforms risk higher prices, fewer jobs and slower growth, FSB warns

Comments are closed.

Follow SME Today on Linkedin and share all the topics you find interesting
Verify your identity for Companies House

The Newsletter

Join our mailing list for the best SME stories, handpicked and delivered direct to your inbox every two weeks!

Sign Up
Events Calendar
    • Marketing
    July 7, 2025

    Bold Business Marketing Specialist Speaks In Swindon This Week

    July 4, 2025

    How Generative AI is Giving SMEs a Marketing Edge

    • Finance
    July 10, 2025

    How to build a £1 million pension and ISA portfolio

    July 10, 2025

    Pension reforms risk higher prices, fewer jobs and slower growth, FSB warns

    • Health & Safety
    July 1, 2025

    Temperatures Soaring: Is Your Workplace Becoming Unsafe?

    January 29, 2025

    UK takeaways guilty of shocking hygiene failures:

    • Events
    July 4, 2025

    £20k grant for female-founded SME up for grabs

    July 2, 2025

    As Seen on BBC Panorama – Brad Burton to Headline The South West Expo in Swindon

    • Community
    July 11, 2025

    Building community, one cause at a time

    June 23, 2025

    Celebrating One Year In Fairford Supporting The Community

    • Food & Drink
    June 23, 2025

    England Cricket Captain, Ben Stokes OBE, takes a stake in Spencer Matthews’ alcohol-free spirits brand, CleanCo

    June 16, 2025

    Hospitality industry risks collapse

    • Books
    April 24, 2025

    Values-Driven Professionalism: A Path to Client Loyalty

    December 2, 2024

    Banish the banshee boss: how to lead without fear – addressing the issue of fear-based management and how NOT to be this manager

    About

    SME Today is published by the same team who deliver The Great British Expos’. We have been organising various corporate events for the last 10 years, with a strong track record of producing well managed and attended business events across the UK.

    Join Our Mailing List

    Receive the latest news and updates from SMEToday.
    Read our Latest Newsletter:


    Sign Up
    X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    Most Recent Posts
    July 11, 2025

    New Venture Aims To Help Propel Growth For Start-Ups

    July 11, 2025

    Building community, one cause at a time

    July 10, 2025

    How to build a £1 million pension and ISA portfolio

    July 10, 2025

    5 Reasons Why Every Office Should Include Flexible Spaces to Work and Their Key Benefits

    July 10, 2025

    Pension reforms risk higher prices, fewer jobs and slower growth, FSB warns

    Categories
    • Books
    • Community & Charity
    • Education and Training
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Features
    • Finance
    • Food and Drink
    • Health & Safety
    • HR & Recruitment
    • In Profile
    • Legal
    • Marketing
    • News
    • Property & Development
    • Sponsored Content
    • Technology
    • Transport & Tourism
    • Wellbeing & Mental Health

    Copyright © 2020 SME Today.

    • ABOUT SME TODAY: THE GO TO RESOURCE FOR UK BUSINESSES
    • Privacy
    • Contact
    Copyright © 2025 SME Today.
    • ABOUT SME TODAY: THE GO TO RESOURCE FOR UK BUSINESSES
    • Privacy
    • Contact

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.