First Voice


	June \| July 2001

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CONTENTS

FSB's manifesto for better Britain

Caution over parental leave

Key victory over business rates

Small businesses to create 2m jobs - survey

LiveWire encourages young entrepreneurs

Judgments on the up

Support for age campaign

Economic affairs discussion

Minister visits growing franchise

Creative agency doubles turnover

Viability of community banks

COMMENTARY
Donald A. Martin
Chairman, UK Policy Unit

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CONTENTS

COMMENTARY

Donald A. Martin
Chairman, UK Policy Unit

The foot and mouth crisis is a very pressing one for many of our members. As a result of the FSB writing to the British Bankers1 Association (BBA) and all of the major high street banks, all of them have written back expressing understanding and wanting to be as helpful as possible in the circumstances.

Likewise, we wrote to HM Customs and Excise and Inland Revenue and we have received reports from around the country that both of these departments are being helpful and deferring payments. However, one particular problem still seems to be the question of business rates. Whilst the Local Government Association has made noises about being as helpful as possible, and states that those authorities collecting business rates will be as understanding as possible, the question of hardship relief is not being used, as far as we can make out, quite so sympathetically.

The Federation continues with its pressures on all of the banks and, through the BBA, to improve the relationship between banks and small businesses. The BBA, as a result of all of this pressure, has now developed a new website dedicated to helping the setting-up and running of small businesses. We would encourage members to visit the new site at www.bba.org.uk/businesses. Feedback would be appreciated.

For the full News, see pages 4-5, 7-8, 27 of the June/July 2001 issue of First Voice

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