South West SMEs are calling on the Chancellor to announce a cut in the VAT rate when he delivers his Budget, a new survey reveals.
Latest data from shows that when asked which initiative would be most beneficial to helping their firm trade this year, more than a fifth (22%) of regional SMEs said a commitment to cut the rate of VAT.
Almost one in five (18%) said they hoped an extension to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, or the introduction of a new scheme to help them retain employees, would be included in the package of measures announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak.
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And more than one in 10 (12%) said they would be keen for him to focus on growth policies such as staff training grants or business investment tax relief. The same proportion of firms (12%) said tax holidays would be beneficial to help with trading in the year ahead.
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Although four in 10 (39%) of those polled said they were either “very” or “fairly” optimistic that their firm could trade solvently through 2021 without the support of Government schemes, a quarter (24%) were “not very” optimistic. Three in 10 (30%) were undecided, saying they were neither confident nor not confident.
The research also revealed the Covid-19 support measures that South West businesses had already made use of during the past year.
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Business Live's South West Business Reporter is William Telford. William has more than a decade's experience reporting on the business scene in Plymouth and the South West. He is based in Plymouth but covers the entire region.
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A third (33%) had used the furlough scheme, while a fifth (20%) had accessed cash grants. One in 12 (8%) had utilised Government-backed emergency business funding, for example a Bounce-Back Loan (BBL) or finance through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS).
Notably, three in 10 respondents (29%) said their business had not needed to access any of the Government’s Covid-19 support schemes so far.
David Beaumont, regional director for the South West at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “Hospitality and tourism businesses remain the lifeblood of the region’s economy and with many preparing to re-open their doors again in the spring, it’s clear that support such as retaining the VAT cut, will provide them with the extra help they need to rebuild in the coming months.
“We remain by the side of SMEs across the South West as they navigate through the road ahead and look to build back stronger.”