Following a presentation to the Northern Ireland Assembly’s Committee for Agriculture, Environmental and Rural Affairs, FSB has called for the Small and Micro Business Impact Test (SAMBIT) to be integrated into climate legislation which is under scrutiny in the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Commenting, following the presentation, FSB NI’s Head of Policy, Neil Hutcheson said:
“If we are to successfully reduce emissions and become sustainable, we must appropriately recognise small businesses.
“Northern Ireland is an SME-led economy, and SMEs are keen to play their part in combating climate change - indeed many are already leading the way in this field.
“To this end policy must be shaped with SMEs in mind, in a way which helps them to engage with the issue, then encourages and enables them to take action.
“Inserting the requirement for the Small and Micro Business Impact Test (SAMBIT) in climate legislation would help ensure future policy and implementation plans are fit for purpose.”
“Policy must be done with small businesses and not to them - including SAMBIT would hard-wire the appropriate level of consultation with small businesses in the years to come.
“We would encourage all our political representatives to support this reasonable, common-sense approach.”