SENIOR business figures have given a guarded welcome to a Budget they said provided some help to small and medium sized enterprises but would not make a significant difference to the sector.
George Osborne highlighted the Government's desire to help small businesses and the self employed to boost growth in the economy in his speech. However, this gave prominence to measures that were already in the pipeline such as scrapping Employers National Insurance charges on the wages of people aged under 21 from April.
Andy Willox, the Federation of Small Businesses' Scottish policy convenor, welcomed the Chancellor's decision to scrap the increase in Fuel Duty that had been due to take effect in September.
He said: "Every penny spent at the pumps is money not spent elsewhere in the economy. By keeping fuel affordable, the chancellor has helped to keep Scotland's army of small business owners moving."
The Chancellor left the standard rate of National Insurance payable by employers on staff wages unchanged at 13.8 per cent. However, the FSB applauded news that class 2 contributions payable by self-employed people will be scrapped in the next parliament.
Mr Willox said: "The abolition of class 2 national insurance contributions is symbolically important - underlining the increasingly importance of the self-employed."
Class 2 NI is only payable at £2.75 per week currently.
Mark Houston, Glasgow office managing partner at Johnston Carmichael chartered accountants, said: "It does not add up to very much, just over £100 a year. It probably makes administrative sense to abolish it."
Mr Houston said the Budget did not contain a lot for SMEs in general.
He was disappointed the Chancellor did not provide much assurance about the future of one of the flagship measures the Government has used to encourage firms to invest.
The Annual Investment Allowance, which allows firms to set spending on things like equipment against their tax bills, is set to fall to £25,000, from £500,000, from 1 January.
Mr Osborne said he expects the allowance to be set a "much more generous rate" but left it to the next Government to decide how much.
Noting the allowance has been claimed by many firms, Mr Houston said the Chancellor should have considered extending the £500,000 allowance for a year.
Liz Cameron, Chief Executive of Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said: "It is welcome news that annual investment allowances will not revert to £25,000 in 2016, as had been feared."
But, she added: "It would have been better for the Chancellor to have indicated the level of allowance that will instead apply in 2016."
Ms Cameron welcomed the help The Budget provided for the oil and gas and drinks industries but bemoaned significant omissions and missed opportunities to support the key tourism sector and exporters.
She said: "Scottish Chambers of Commerce has long believed that a reduction in the rate of VAT chargeable on accommodation, tourist attraction admission and restaurant services to five per cent is essential if we are to compete effectively with other European nations which have already gone down this route."
Ms Cameron said the Chancellor should have scrapped Air Passenger Duty, which adds to the cost of flying to and from Scotland.
Scottish Chambers of Commerce said the Chancellor's proposal to replace the annual self-assessment tax return with new digital tax accounts could herald a welcome simplification on the administrative burden felt by many small businesses.
Jim Duffy, chief executive of the Entrepreneurial Spark business accelerator scheme, said: 'More can be done to cut the red tape that remains as a barrier to start-ups but this is a good first step. Raising the VAT threshold from £81,000 to £100,000 would have been equally welcome, as that is a huge headache for countless businesses."
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