Financial advisers have expressed concerns over the lack of governmental support for small businesses as they grapple with economic pressures.
A survey conducted by alternative lender Thincats revealed that over half of the advisers deemed government policy unsupportive of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), while a mere six per cent found it supportive, as reported by .
In the past year, SMEs across Britain have faced challenging economic conditions.
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The introduction of higher employment costs and increased taxes in Chancellor Rachel Reeves' Autumn Budget has added further strain on SMEs.
Earlier this year, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) warned that Labour's workers' rights package, coupled with the rise in minimum wage, could cause significant disruption to smaller firms, potentially leading them to reduce their workforce.
Ravi Anand, managing director at ThinCats, spoke to City AM: "Given the 海角视频 has a bigger service-led industry, the NICs hikes and potential employment law changes have had a greater bearing.
"It's definitely been harder in consumer facing industries like retail and hospitality, but also in healthcare with care homes also managing hire costs too."
SMEs shrug off tariffs
Anand noted that due to their services-lean nature, SMEs were less affected by the tariff uncertainty that troubled the first half of the year, compared to those in manufacturing and automotive sectors.
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The British Business Bank increased the capacity of its Growth Guarantee Scheme in response to President Donald Trump's trade tariff measures, with the aim of supporting SMEs.
The scheme provided the bank with an additional £500m lending capacity to help smaller businesses cope with cash flow issues resulting from trade uncertainty.
However, according to Louis Taylor, the chief executive of the British Business Bank, the take-up of the Growth Guarantee Scheme was very low.
Moreover, research by Thincats showed that nearly 40% of advisers reported a decline in deal activity at the beginning of 2025.
Despite this, 35% of advisers expressed confidence in the 海角视频's economic outlook for the next six months, citing market stability and "pent-up demand" as key reasons.
Anand stated: "Following the Autumn Statement, many businesses have basically paused on any growth or acquisitions."
"Wider geopolitical issues are raising concerns about government debt and expectations of rate decreases by the Bank of England. Despite these challenges, the good news is that businesses in the mid-market are resilient, and advisers are picking up on positive sentiment."