According to a new report published by Begbies Traynor, nearly 200,000 small businesses in this country are still struggling financially, even though the UK is now officially out of recession.
Of the respondents that took part in the survey, which included UK based recruiters and umbrella companies, more than £50,000,000,000 is owed to trade suppliers and long term creditors, such as banks and financial institutions.
In light of these findings, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is now calling on the next government to apply a more sympathetic approach when attempting to recoup it’s tax liabilities. A spokesperson from the FSB said that HMRC should continue to use discretion when considering whether to call time on small businesses that are unable to pay their VAT, PAYE or Corporation Tax bill.
According to the FSB, the UK economy is still in a fragile state and the next government should introduce new measures to help small businesses access short and long term credit. They also want to see more pressure put on larger businesses to settle invoices on time to improve overall cashflow and liquidity in the SME marketplace.
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