Small businesses call for Ofgem to tackle soaring standing charges on energy
FSB’s policy chair, Tina McKenzie, this week wrote to energy regulator Ofgem’s chief executive, Jonathan Brearley, about soaring standing charges to small businesses, many of which have seen the daily charge they pay to be connected to the energy grid shoot up in recent months. One small firm told FSB it has seen an increase in its daily standing charge from 70.94p in July 2021 to 969.64p in September 2023 – over 13 times higher. FSB’s letter calls on the energy regulator to recognise the “specific, negative impact standing charges are having on small firms”. The letter received wide national and regional media coverage, including in the Mirror, the Mail Online, and the Independent. The cost of utilities continues to be cited as a major driver of increased costs for small businesses - three in five small businesses reported this in FSB’s Small Business Index.
Scam alert: Fake VAT QR code
Small businesses are being warned about a new scam in which fraudsters are impersonating HMRC to get business owners to scan a QR code sent via email. Using the QR code will allow the scammers to access sensitive personal and financial information. HMRC has issued a reminder that it will never ask someone to submit personal information, particularly relating to VAT, using a QR code. Businesses should report any suspicious activity, including unusual texts, emails, and phone calls through HMRC’s website.
Shocking surge in de-banking revealed
De-banking complaints surged by a huge 44 per cent in the last year, according to new figures from Parliament’s Treasury Committee, released this week. FSB’s Alan Soady told LBC News that greater transparency of the reasons behind account closures was needed. FSB is calling on the Financial Conduct Authority to collect and publish quarterly data from banks, fully detailing the reasons for these closures.
Access to cash must be maintained
FSB attended an event in Parliament hosted by Anne Marie Morris MP and organised by the Industry and Parliament Trust, outlining the importance of maintaining access to cash for small businesses. The issue is particularly important in rural areas, where poor connectivity makes online services hard to access. Recently, FSB called on the Government to improve the rollout of banking hubs - community spaces that are shared by different high street banks - however, their roll-out across the UK has been slow.
New free Help to Grow management course for SMEs launched
The Government has launched a new free business management course for small firms, following FSB campaigning. Help to Grow: Management Essentials is a new online training course with practical advice and resources for small business leaders of newer or smaller SMEs. This is an updated version of the Help to Grow management course, which is not available for firms with fewer than five employees. FSB National Chair Martin McTague said: "FSB has been making the case for a streamlined, digital taster session version of the Help to Grow Management course, and we’re delighted to see this now delivered.
Trail of subsidised health assessments for SMEs in two regions
Following calls from FSB for heavily subsidised health assessments for SMEs, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has agreed to launch a trial of the workplace health assessment service in Cumbria and Lancashire. If the pilot has a good uptake, it could be rolled out nationally so small businesses in these two areas are urged to take part to get a workplace health assessment to support an employee's health and disability. Eligible SMEs can get a code for an 80 per cent discount on workplace health assessments for all employees and search for a private sector workplace health provider to do the assessment.
EU import changes take effect next week
Changes to plant and animal-based product imports from the EU are due to take effect from 30 April. A number of new import controls are set to be introduced as part of the Broader Target Operating Model, including physical border checks for medium and high-risk products, and new common user charges on all imports to Great Britain. Although it has been reported that initial numbers of physical checks are expected to be minimal, small firms that import or make use of plant and animal-based products should continue to prepare for the changes.
New AI and digital advice hub launches
The Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum (DRCF) has launched a new AI And Digital Hub pilot, to coordinate advice on digital-related issues from regulators the Competition and Markets Authority, the Financial Conduct Authority, the Information Commissioner’s Office, and the Office of Communications (Ofcom). Businesses and organisations can submit requests for joint responses from two or more regulators through the hub, which will offer free, informal advice on complex digital issues that fall under the remit of more than one regulator. Queries can be submitted at the DRCF website.
Shadow Skills Minister meets small businesses
FSB joined Shadow Skills Minister Seema Malhotra MP and the Careers and Enterprise Company this week, to discuss the importance of skills and work experience in England. FSB outlined how equipping people with the skills that small employers need enables both employers and employees to thrive. Other topics discussed included the invaluable role that on-the-job experience plays, especially work experience for younger people, and the need to make digital skills a priority. FSB outlines the importance of matching skills and training to the needs of small businesses in its Scaling Up Skills report.
Welsh Government’s economic priorities unveiled: small businesses respond
This week, Wales’s new Minister for Economy Jeremy Miles set out the Welsh Government’s economic priorities. In his statement to the Senedd, Mr Miles pointed to the need to focus on growing productive and sustainable businesses, commenting: “There is no route to the more compassionate country that we want to be which does not pass through the more prosperous country that we need to be.” FSB welcomed the positive tone of the statement and reiterated the need for Welsh Government to redouble its efforts to engage the small business community to understand the challenges and opportunities to help shape an agenda for growth. FSB also pointed to the need to protect the business support infrastructure in Wales to help grow business to respond to requirements in growing sectors, like floating offshore wind, which the Minister described as a “whole of government goal”.
Selling to the Indo-Pacific
SMEs can join businesses and trade experts at the Department for Business and Trade (DBT)’s Indo-Pacific roadshow this June. The roadshow will visit eight UK cities throughout June: Reading, Cardiff, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Belfast, Leeds, and London. It will feature interactive and networking sessions, provide details on the new Free Trade Agreements, and offer the chance to speak directly with DBT teams for the Indo-Pacific regions about how small businesses can grow their exports to South Asia and the Asia Pacific. Find out more about selling to the Indo-Pacific at FSB’s website.
Applications invited for women entrepreneurs’ incubator programme
Women in enterprise are invited to apply for the Women’s Launch Lab Incubator Programme, before 30 April. The programme offers female founders access to resources and mentorship to jumpstart their business ideas, before pitching their vision to a panel of venture capitalists and ‘angel investors’. Ten free spaces are available, within two different training categories of Start-up and Scale-up across five UK regions. Two cash prizes will be awarded to one start-up and one scale-up business, with entrepreneur Akshata Murty leading the judging panel.
Sign up to receive the Weekly Brief direct to your inbox
Keep up to date with all the latest small business news each week by having the Weekly Brief sent directly to your inbox.
Subscribe to the LinkedIn Weekly Brief