Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Small Businesses: Non-financial Reporting Requirements

Thursday 2 May 2024 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Department raised monetary thresholds to reclassify company sizes, saving around 113,000 businesses 145 million annually.
  • The Department offers various financial and advisory support schemes for small businesses, including Start-Up Loans Company and Help to Grow management suite.
  • The Department conducts necessary border checks but opposes dynamic alignment with EU rules to avoid permanent adherence.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Rob Butler
Business & Trade
Context

The MP notes that non-financial reporting requirements can be burdensome for small and medium-sized enterprises. He references the need for companies to focus on growth rather than administrative tasks.

Question

What steps her Department is taking to reduce non-financial reporting requirements for small businesses?

Answer from Kevin Hollinrake

We have raised the monetary thresholds that determine company size, reclassifying around 13,000 medium-sized companies as small and 100,000 small companies as micro-companies. This will save approximately £145 million annually for these businesses.

Answered
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Q2 Rob Butler
Business & Trade
Context

The MP emphasizes the importance of reducing bureaucratic burdens on small businesses to allow them to focus more on growth. He highlights government initiatives already in place but seeks further details.

Question

I visit many small businesses in my Aylesbury constituency, and I am always incredibly impressed by their spirit of entrepreneurship and the huge effort and hard work that they put in to succeed. They want to be able to devote as much of their skill and time as possible to finding new customers, selling more of their products and creating jobs, not to bureaucracy, admin and onerous regulation.

Answer from Kevin Hollinrake

We have made progress by offering access to finance through Start-Up Loans Company, growth guarantee scheme, equity investment schemes, seed enterprise investment scheme, and enterprise investment scheme. We also provide supportive advice through our Help to Grow management suite, including a newly launched “Help to Grow: Management Essentials” course for small businesses.

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Q3 Tan Dhesi Lab Slough
Brexit Business & Trade
Context

The MP references a report from the British Poultry Council stating that UK exporters face £55 million in extra costs annually due to unreciprocated EU border checks. He argues that this is unfair and undermines UK businesses.

Question

Alongside the despair and financial pressures faced by small businesses, the British Poultry Council recently reported that unreciprocated EU border checks have unfairly saddled UK exporters with £55 million a year in extra costs, while their EU counterparts pay absolutely nothing. Does the Minister agree that this Government's failure to negotiate a fair sanitary and phytosanitary agreement with the EU has directly undermined British businesses and exposed our exporters to severe competitive disadvantages?

Answer from Kevin Hollinrake

We aim for a fair playing field but require necessary border checks. We do not support dynamic alignment with EU rules as it would lock us into permanent adherence, which we oppose.

Not addressed: The specific question about the impact of unreciprocated EU border checks on UK exporters was not directly addressed

How: Dynamic Alignment With Eu Rules, Opposing Customs Union And Single Market

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