SMALL and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) say they have been ignored in this General Election campaign, which has been dominated by a hard Brexit, according to a Scottish business group.
Business for Scotland (BfS) said a poll of its members found that issues such as late payment legislation and boosting SME growth had become lost in the election campaign, and they wanted to see specific policies focussing on business growth after tomorrow’s poll.
The group asked members what their priorities were for a “business manifesto”. The top three answers were legislation on late payment, support for SME growth and keeping membership of the single market. More than two thirds (67 per cent) of the SME sector in Scotland would create rapid jobs and turnover growth – as well as a rise in tax revenues – if late payment was not an issue, according to BfS.
“Forty-six per cent predicted between five and 10 per cent growth, but the larger companies in particular thought they would grow faster, with 22 per cent suggesting ending late payment would lead to more than 10 per cent growth and seven per cent saying they would achieve more than 20 per cent growth,” said BfS.
The group said there were two key priorities for boosting SME growth – a small business commissioner’s office for Scotland and a dedicated minister. The former would have a wider remit than the UK commissioner to give greater support to SMEs in conflict resolution around payments and contracts. The minister would have powers to tackle late payment and increase SME participation in public sector procurement. BfS said Holyrood should create a policy and demand any extra powers required to empower such a position.
On retaining membership of the European single market and customs union, BfS said its members supported the Scottish Government’s efforts to maintain membership of both.
The group also proposed raising basic Corporation Tax to 22 per cent with up to seven per cent “targeted tax credits” to firms increasing youth employment and exports, investing more in research and development, hiring and training more young people and paying the living wage. It said: “Our initial scoping work demonstrated that this could save more than £1bn in benefits payments and generate more than £12bn in additional GDP for Scotland over five years.”
Scottish councils offer SMEs several skills and employment-based schemes, for which the EU provides half the funding and BfS said this was now under threat from Brexit.
“It is vital that we increase incentives for companies to train and recruit younger employees through apprenticeship style schemes with more of an emphasis on targeting incentives to where skills shortages exist,” said the group.
Gordon MacIntyre-Kemp, BfS CEO, said: “It is only through a balance of social protection and wealth creation that a shared prosperity can be created. SMEs form the backbone of Scotland’s economy and represent the bulk of Scotland’s future jobs growth potential.
“Big corporates are in the main part profit takers, but SMEs are the prosperity makers. Scotland’s SMEs are our primary drivers of economic growth and job creation and so their needs should be the key focus of business policy and they absolutely need single market membership to thrive.”
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