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“We just need the Government to get out of the way”, say Chichester’s business leaders
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Businesses across Chichester have joined forces to discuss what ‘Red Tape’ and burdensome regulations are holding back growth in their businesses, with Jess Brown-Fuller MP at her Red Tape business roundtable event.
SMEs from across a wide range of sectors workshopped some of the frustrating barriers to business and growth, which are holding back Chichester’s business community and preventing its sectors from thriving.
One business owner summed up the issue suggesting, rather than specific support from the Government, what business really needs is for it to just ‘get out of our way’, or, as another owner put it: ‘just stop putting nails in the road, that’s all we are asking for!’
Jess Brown-Fuller MP told local businesses:
“Chichester businesses are not struggling because they lack ambition or talent, but the system keeps getting in the way.
The Lib Dems are committed to axing 100 pieces of red tape; not by scrapping protections that matter for consumers and workers, but by removing the bureaucratic dead weight that costs businesses time and money without protecting anyone.”
From HMRC hassles, to red-tape riddled Planning admin, entrepreneurs reported multiple obstacles to operating, and what’s most concerning is that things are only getting worse.
Changes to employment law have left employers saddled with even more cost and confusion, with one business reporting that the cost of sickness is now ‘out of control’ and HR issues singled out as a number one ‘time sink’ for small business owners.
Post-Brexit, export and import barriers have strangled international prospects for Chichester businesses, with numerous businesses deciding to halt exports entirely.
Each business owner has their own HMRC horrors, with a new consultation on VAT payment threatening fresh cost pressures and a collective howling across the business spectrum when talk turned to doing battle with the notorious Government Gateway online portal.
All businesses face unique issues within their sector, but what is unanimous is a call to empower both business leaders and local government officials in order to allow them to make informed, sensible decisions. Or, to put it in the words of one impassioned operator – we need a new government department: the Department for Common Sense. (Look out for the DfCS in the next cabinet reshuffle!)
Jess’s event was part of a wider national 'Clearing the Way' campaign from the Lib Dems to eliminate ‘Red Tape’ and pointless bureaucracy and to empower businesses to grow across the country.
“Small businesses are the backbone of the UK and local economy; we hear a lot about what’s broken, but this was an opportunity to have a meaty, frank discussion about what can be fixed.”
said Jess Brown-Fuller MP.
From the High Street, to the coastline – and every industrial park company and one-person band in between – Chichester’s business community is clearly up to the challenge of growth. But the one thing they are missing is space.
