Commenting on the new Small and Micro Business Assessment, which has been announced by Michael Fallon today (Thursday), Caroline Williams CEO Norfolk Chamber of Commerce said:
“Smaller Norfolk companies often find it difficult to comply with regulations, compared with their larger counterparts who have more resource. If this policy directly reduces the time and money that firms spend on needless bureaucracy, then the business community will show its support.
“Smaller businesses have the potential to become the wealth creators of tomorrow, but they do need an enterprise-friendly environment to be able to do this. Part of this is freeing them from red tape ,which prevents them from focusing on more important growth priorities, such as creating jobs and exporting their goods.
“We hope that this policy will help to deliver significant reductions in regulation and provide a more common-sense approach to regulation more generally. The Chamber will keep an eye on this new policy over the coming months to ensure that it is actually making a difference to local firms on the ground.”
The British Chambers of Commerce is today (Wednesday) publishing its submission for the government’s Spending Review, which will be announced later this month. Following extensive research into business’ priorities for the Spending Review, the business group is calling on the Chancellor to shift government spending away from current spending towards capital investment that will help get the economy back on track.
In April, the BCC polled nearly 1,800 firms across the UK, from which three clear messages emerged:
1. Lower public spending matched by lower taxes would deliver the best outcome for the UK economy
Almost half (42%) of businesses ranked the reduction in public spending and taxes as their preferred option to boost the health of the UK economy
This compared to only 13% of firms who listed higher public spending and higher taxes as their first choice
The BCC believes that maintaining departmental ring-fences for short-term political gains is not consistent with a long-term vision of a low-tax, enterprise-friendly and internationally-competitive economy.
2. The top three areas that businesses would like the government to prioritise were economic development, education and transport. Foreign aid and social security were the lowest.
Economic development (which includes trade promotion and business support) came out as the top priority for government spending at 68%, with education second (57%) and transport third (47%).
Only 1% see foreign aid – currently protected by a ring-fence from cuts – as a priority area and only 6% see social security – the largest area of spend – as a priority for government spending.
While the BCC is not calling for the protection of any specific Whitehall department budgets, we reiterate our long-standing call to shift state spending towards supporting the economy.
3. The present balance between capital investment and current spending is far out of line with business perceptions and expectations
On average, UK businesses wanted to see a 3:1 split of current and capital spending in budget allocations after learning of the actual ratio, which is closer to 13:1.
This suggests businesses would like to see a massive boost to capital expenditure, which would require a radical reprioritisation of government budgets.
The BCC is calling for a greater focus on investing in capital assets including transport, energy, education, digital and other local economic infrastructure, such as road maintenance and house building.
PRIORITY SPENDING MEASURES TO BOOST GROWTH
The following priority areas are consistent with the business opinion identified from our survey, and would have a significant impact on economic growth. They are costed, and we believe the government can offset these costs through cutbacks to other, less growth-focused, areas of spending.
Promote access to finance for growing businesses
The BCC welcomed the initial £1 billion commitment to the new British Business Bank as an important first step, but investment must be on a greater scale if it is to succeed in supporting growing companies
An additional investment of £9 billion from the government over the next three years would provide the necessary capital base to allow the Business Bank to start lending directly to businesses.
The government and the Bank of England should use their balance sheets to extend the backing of the Funding for Lending scheme’s billions to the embryonic Business Bank. This would energise a crucial player in the lending market, and help to solve the long-term structural gap in finance that continues to strangle far too many growth businesses across the UK.
Direct Exchequer cost: £3 billion per annum
Immediate infrastructure stimulus to boost house building and road maintenance
The BCC believes that continued underinvestment in road maintenance will lead to further deterioration in the state of Britain’s road networks; whereas additional investment would boost employment, support local construction and underpin local economies more generally.
The BCC continues to call for a Road Repair and Renewal Fund, which would need to be at least £12 billion over the next three year period. This would help to address the current backlog of repairs which stands at £9 billion and is growing by nearly £800 million per year.
We urge the government to directly invest in much-needed new social housing, and for 100,000 more new homes to be added to the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) target to 2015.
The BCC strongly believes that house building, not uncertain mortgage market interventions as announced in this year’s Budget, is required to boost the economy and help remove distortions in the housing market.
Investment in more affordable housing would directly boost the economy through employment in the house-building sector and would benefit mostly UK-based companies.
Direct Exchequer cost: £4.8 billion per annum
Promoting exports
If we are to successfully rebalance the economy towards exports, the government must do more to enhance the level and effectiveness of support available to UK companies trading internationally
In the Autumn Statement, UKTI was allocated a budget of £70 million to deliver services to more small- and medium-size exporters and help to refocus UKTI activities on the highest-value opportunities and emerging markets. To date, a small proportion of this funding has been allocated towards the direct support of SME exporters.
The BCC is urging the government to allocate more funding towards supporting SME exporters, with more funds going directly to the coal face rather than into Whitehall-driven programmes.
Trade missions, development of in-market support and promotion of market opportunities to companies in the UK must be prioritised. An extra £33.3m per annum over the course of the Spending Review period, if split between the 20 priority markets identified by UKTI, would yield a market development budget of £1.65 million per annum. This equates to £5m per market over the whole Spending Review period.
The government has issued an export challenge, and wants to see 100,000 more British firms exporting by 2020. Without additional export support on a large scale, achieving this will be difficult.
Direct Exchequer cost: £33.3m per annum
Long-term commitment to renewing Britain’s infrastructure
• Without significant efforts from the government to accelerate and deepen reforms to attract private investment in the country’s infrastructure, the UK’s ability to compete internationally will be further undermined. The government must go further and faster to de-risk private investment in infrastructure. • The Bank of England could also help to lever private investment in infrastructure by providing guarantees to make involvement attractive to investors • Mechanisms that would support infrastructure investment over the longer-term could include establishing a government-backed Infrastructure Investment Bank or a ‘Reverse Sovereign Wealth Fund’. This would allow institutional investors to invest in projects indirectly and at a guaranteed rate of return.
TOTAL COST OF RECOMMENDED MEASURES: Approximately £8bn per annum
Commenting, John Longworth, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
“This is the Chancellor’s last chance to make a real difference to the health of the UK economy, this side of the next general election. Our Spending Review submission, based on business opinion, is calling for a radical shift of focus towards areas like infrastructure, economic development and skills – the big enablers of an enterprise-friendly economy. Our submission proves that the government can have its cake and eat it. It can continue to reduce the deficit while investing heavily in measures that will support growth.
“It is unacceptable that ministers continue to ring-fence certain areas of spending for political reasons, and programmes that do little to boost UK output are being protected at the expense of capital investment. Infrastructure spending and radical action on direct house building and road maintenance would provide a significant boost to the construction sector and local growth. Furthermore, the UK’s overall export performance is still not where it could or should be. If we are to win the ‘global race’ described by the Prime Minister, we need a huge increase in the resources dedicated to supporting international trade. But these measures must be focused on frontline support to businesses, not the extension of agencies or bureaucracy in Whitehall.
“Businesses across the UK are crying out for more support to help them drive growth, boost trade overseas and create jobs and wealth. The Chancellor must be brave and listen to the business community, and seize this opportunity to go all out in the name of growth.”
Mike Strawson has received a prestigious honour, in recognition of more than half a century’s work promoting British exports.
Mike, who has been working with the Norfolk Chamber for more than a decade, delivers the organisation’s highly successful training programmes covering all aspects of international trade.
He has received a Lifetime Achievement award from the Institute of Export for his outstanding contribution to export sales and also in teaching international trade skills to others. He was one of only three people to receive the honour.
Mike, who’s 71 and has been involved in exporting since he was 17, has also received a prestigious Fellowship from the Institute he first joined as a student in 1962. The organisation has just 24 Fellows.
“It’s a source of great pride because it’s an award given to me by my peers – the highest honour anyone can give,” said Mike. “I’ve spent a lifetime doing something I thoroughly enjoy. And I’ve had a lot of pleasure in travelling and learning about different cultures, trying different foods and making many friends around the world.”
Mike’s career has involved working with top firms such as Croda Chemicals, Triang Toys, the Bunzl Group and Novatech Adhesives.
Tracey Howard, International Trade Director at Norfolk Chamber said “It’s a privilege to work alongside Mike. He’s passionate about international trade and is without doubt the top export trainer in the country.
“I’m sure many of our local exporters who have been trained by Mike, will join me in congratulating him on this honour, which is well deserved.”
There are now only 2 weeks left to submit your entry for the Chamber Awards. The Chamber Awards are considered one of the UK’s most hotly contested and prestigious business awards.
Norfolk has lots of highly successful businesses and this is your opportunity to showcase the best of Norfolk at a national level. The Awards recognise and reward business success with a range of specialist categories to meet the needs of any organisation. Each year hundreds of businesses compete for the coveted National Chamber Awards along with the £25,000 cash prize on offer.
Entry to the Chamber Awards is free for Norfolk Chamber members – so take the first step towards winning and enter your business today. Businesses submitting an entry for any of the above award categories by Friday 21 June will automatically be entered into a prize draw to win an iPad Mini.
The final closing date for entries is 28 June and the regional winners will be announced on 30th September. The winners will go through to compete in the National Final, where they will be judged by a panel of business leaders and entrepreneurs. The Chamber Awards programme will conclude with the prestigious gala awards dinner on 28th November in central London, where one business will be awarded the £25,000 prize courtesy of the RBS Group. To enter online click here.
The British Chambers of Commerce recently carried out an International Trade Survey on businesses across Norfolk and the rest of the UK. The results showed that exporting was on the increase, rising from 32% of those surveyed in 2012 to 39% in 2013.
Some interesting responses were received from Norfolk businesses – please take a look at the Norfolk Survey Results.
Thank you to all of you who took the time to respond to the survey.
In the three months to January 2013, unemployment fell by 5,000, and employment rose by 24,000
Youth unemployment fell by 43,000, but remains high
In the first quarter of 2013, public sector employment fell by 22,000, while private sector employment increased by 46,000
Commenting on the unemployment figures, published today by the ONS, David Kern, Chief Economist at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said:
“This modest improvement in the labour market is very welcome, especially as it reverses the decline seen in the last couple of months. Despite the level of inactivity rising slightly, the UK labour market remains robust and is performing well by international standards. However pay, excluding bonuses, remains well below inflation at 0.9%, exacerbating the squeeze on real incomes.
“The private sector is creating jobs while the public sector shrinks, which proves that British businesses are able to drive the economic recovery while circumstances at home and abroad remain challenging. In this month’s Spending Review, the Chancellor should look towards a shift of priorities away from current spending and towards capital investment, to improve the supply potential of the economy.”
At a recent meeting of the Norwich Chamber Council, Karen O’Kane the Programme Director for Better Broadband for Norfolk and John Cullum, the Senior Deployment Manager for BT Openreach provided a progress report on upgrading broadband in Norfolk and highlighted the benefits to business.
Facts about Next Generation Access (NGA) Infrastructure:
600 cabinets and 157 local telephone exchanges in Norfolk
Starting Point: Installation of fibre spines to connect local Exchange Areas to the nearest Head Exchange.
Average length of a fibre spine in the UK is 3km to 5km
Better broadband will provide new opportunities for businesses in Norfolk allowing them to innovate and expand into different markets. It also has the potential to increase efficiency and drive down costs by offering access to:
Cloud computing – business data and software applications that are hosted remotely. Many cloud based business applications are now available ranging from basic office software to more sophisticated business software such as customer relationship management systems
Voice over internet (VoIP) communication systems which enable basic call routing and voicemail through to video conferencing.
Web conferencing enables businesses to meet in real time and share desktops
Data transfer – upload latest content quickly and effectively to keep ecommerce and other websites up to date. Send and receive large files (e.g. complex plans and drawings, videos etc).
Remote data storage – backup business data automatically and regularly to a remote and secure location.
Flexible working – work from the office, from the home or on the move in a way and at a time that meets your business, and employee, needs.
Public sector borrowing, excluding transfers from the Bank of England QE scheme, was £12.7bn in May 2013, compared with net borrowing of £15.6bn in May 2012
Public sector net debt was 75.2% of GDP
Commenting on the Public Sector Finances for May 2013, published today by the ONS, David Kern, Chief Economist at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said:
“Various adjustments make it very difficult to make a full comparison of the public finances, although there appears to be a superficial improvement. However the significant fall in our oil and gas reserves, and the problems facing our financial sector, have created a long-term shortfall in the government’s ability to generate tax receipts. Our structural deficit will remain unacceptably high for some time, and the government must persevere with its plan to bring it down. As the economy gradually begins to recover throughout 2013, we expect that public finances will improve.
“Next week’s Spending Review gives the Chancellor an opportunity to reallocate resources, focusing on measures to boost growth such as infrastructure investment, while continuing to make real cuts in current spending. Any room for manoeuvre must be used to help create jobs and drive economic growth.”
The May unemployment figures across Norfolk followed the trend of the rest of the UK and fell slightly. The county showed an overall reduction of 3.6%. Unemployment rates in Norfolk have been falling noticeably since February 2013, however, despite this drop, there are still over 17,000 unemployment claimants in Norfolk.
The latest report shows that 26% of the claimants in our region are aged between 18 and 24 years old and the national percentage is only slightly lower at 25.9%. Norwich has the largest number of claimants between 16 and 64 years old, with just under 4,400 and Great Yarmouth has over 3,500 claimants. The Norwich figure dropped by 2%, whilst Great Yarmouth dropped by 3.2%. This still leaves Great Yarmouth in 13th place on the unemployment tables for the English Local Authorities, of which there are fifty local authorities, whilst Norwich is listed in 45th place.
The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has announced the appointment of Nora Senior as its new President, succeeding Martyn Pellew who stands down after two years in post. Nora, who will be the business group’s first female President for ten years, was officially appointed at the BCC’s Annual General Meeting after serving as Vice President since June 2011.
Nora is the Executive Chair for UK Regions of global PR agency Weber Shandwick and has more than 20 years’ experience in the public relations and government affairs sector. She is part of the Regional Advisory Group to the London Stock Exchange, and holds non-executive roles with organisations such as the Scottish Council for Development and Industry, and previously with the National Trust.
Nora has been recognised with a number of business achievement awards including Scottish Businesswoman of the Year. More recently, she was presented with the UK First Woman in the Media Award on 12 June.
Caroline Williams CEO Norfolk Chamber of Commerce said:
“We are thrilled to have just a dynamic person taking the role of BCC President. The Chamber Network Nora wants to achieve, which takes advantage of digital technology, is absolutely where Norfolk Chamber’s plans to be and I am really looking forward to working closely with her. She has already agree to be one of our keynote speakers at our Unlocking Potential Business Conference on 22 November and I recommend everyone puts this date in their diary”
Commenting on her appointment as BCC President, Nora Senior said:
“The British Chambers of Commerce is a leading voice on all issues relating to business and I look forward to championing its crucial work, which benefits businesses of all sizes and sectors across the UK. There are many issues that still need government attention – particularly around the much-needed support for international trade and helping young people to join the workforce, both of which are so important if we are to see a sustainable economic recovery.
“Together with the support of Chambers of Commerce across the UK, I will be working hard to ensure that the views of the business community are heard at both a local and national level, and will continue to campaign for an enterprise-friendly environment so that existing and new businesses can thrive.
“At this crucial time for the UK economy, Chambers of Commerce are more important than ever. They act as a front door in every town and city across the UK, providing support to businesses directly at the coal face. Just take international trade as an example. Chambers help businesses take their goods and services to new markets in a number of different ways – acting as a first port of call for advice, holding export seminars, exchanging knowledge and best practice from ‘mature’ exporters and leading trade missions to fast-growing markets overseas.
“As someone who travels the world as a services exporter, I see first-hand how it’s become easier and more cost effective to trade internationally. Businesses, particularly small- and medium-sized companies across all sectors, need to be encouraged to explore the potential to step into new markets – but the fear of exporting has be removed. Given the need for Britain to achieve an export-led recovery, Chambers are and will remain at the heart of this agenda.”
Outgoing President, Martyn Pellew, said:
“During my tenure as President, I have worked alongside BCC Director General John Longworth to campaign on behalf of British business. My job has allowed me the privilege of visiting some truly inspiring companies over the last two years, many of whom are finding innovative ways to grow their businesses and increase their workforces. I know that with the help of their local Chambers, these businesses will continue to build on these successes.
“I now hand over to Nora, whose vast business and communications experience and previous involvement with the BCC will prove invaluable at this crucial time for the UK business community.”
Abellio train operator Greater Anglia has won a major rail industry award for its excellent service delivery during the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The company received the Cross-Industry Partnership Award at the national Rail Innovation Awards for its impressive performance and customer service standards, achieved in partnership with Network Rail and Transport for London, during last summer’s Games when the eyes of the world were on London.
Greater Anglia welcomed almost 1.3 million additional passengers on its London-bound services over the Olympic and Paralympic Games, with 94.9% of trains arriving on-time. The company provided an average of 150,000 extra seats per day, an increase in capacity of over 25%, with over 600 trains a day calling at Stratford. Extra customer service staff – easily identifiable in their magenta tabards – were deployed across the company’s network to provide assistance to passengers to and from the Games. Additional contingencies were put in place so that if key events overran (as then happened with the Opening and Closing Ceremonies) trains could be held back to ensure everyone was able to get home afterwards.
All these plans were especially important with Stratford the key station serving the Olympic Park, so it was vital that both train and station operations ran smoothly, and with effective coordination with Network Rail and other train operators critical to the success of the plans.
The arrangements were the result of a focused approach led by a dedicated project team which ensured that detailed plans were in place and a real ‘Games spirit’ was created amongst the entire Greater Anglia team and its partners. High standards of customer service were celebrated and encouraged, with the proactive strategy exemplified by the London Liverpool Street cleaner Gaspare Giarracco, whose search and recovery of mislaid Olympics tickets from amongst the huge station waste bins was greatly appreciated by the passengers involved.
Commenting on the award, Ruud Haket, Managing Director of Greater Anglia said:
“I am delighted that the superb efforts of the entire team at Greater Anglia in partnership with colleagues from Network Rail and Transport for London have been recognised with this award. The excellent punctuality results, allied with the highest standards of customer service, ensured that those passengers travelling to the Games last summer enjoyed a great day out and were impressed with the service provided. That all this was achieved only six months into a franchise, was testament to a remarkable team effort, both within Greater Anglia, but also with our rail industry partners. I want to reiterate our thanks to all of our employees and industry colleagues who contributed to such a successful outcome.
“We’re committed to building on those high standards to deliver excellent service on our network on a consistent basis, and have achieved new, record-breaking punctuality results in the 10 months since the Games ended. We recognise there is much more to do and the improvements achieved to date, including the Olympics/Paralympics service which led to this award, are inspiring us to provide an even better service for our customers.”