Norfolk and Suffolk businesses urge Chancellor to end 'anti-entrepreneur era' in Budget
New figures show more than half of small firms have seen takings fall this year
Small businesses across Norfolk and Suffolk are calling for "hope" from the Chancellor's first Budget this week, after new research revealed more than half have seen their takings fall over the past three months.
The findings come from the Federation of Small Businesses' (FSB) latest Small Business Index, which tracks how small firms and self-employed people are coping across the UK.
It found that 53% of small firms reported a fall in revenue over the third quarter of the year, compared with just 23% who saw an increase.
Nine in ten firms said their costs had risen compared with the same period last year, with a third reporting increases of more than 10%.
Jobs under pressure
The report also found that hiring has slowed sharply among small businesses.
Only one in 14 small firms increased their staff numbers over the past three months, while one in five had to cut jobs.
Looking ahead to the final quarter of the year, just one in 16 small firms expect to grow their workforce, while more than one in six expect to have to reduce it.
Candy Richards, from the FSB's East of England branch, said small firms in the region are feeling the strain.
"Our hospitality sector in particular here in the East of England is under a huge amount of pressure," she said. "They've seen their business rates bill spiral, big hikes in energy costs and staffing costs, and this comes at the same time as households are cutting their discretionary spending."
She also pointed to businesses with larger workforces being affected.
"A local company over in Suffolk, for example, who employs a lot of cleaners, they've seen their wage costs rise and their sick pay bill increase as well because of some of the changes to employment costs and employment legislation," she said.
What businesses want from the Budget
The FSB is calling on the Chancellor to raise the Small Business Rate Relief threshold, after what it describes as a decade-long freeze that has pulled more than 100,000 small firms into the tax.
The organisation also wants the Employment Allowance increased and linked to the National Living Wage, along with a cut to Business Asset Disposal Relief and a rise in the VAT registration threshold to £100,000.
Richards said small firms and households alike are looking for reassurance.
"So I think small businesses and households, what we really need is hope," she said. "Hope that there is a plan for the future to grow our economy and back small businesses to create the jobs that we really need."
FSB National Chair Tina McKenzie said the Budget represented a chance for the Government to reset its relationship with small firms.
'The Chancellor has a chance to draw a line under the anti-entrepreneur era and show that backing small businesses to grow is once again a Government priority,' she said. 'Our research lays it out all too clearly. Small businesses of all kinds are seeing their takings fall and their costs rise. This cannot continue.'