As election fever takes hold, we are hearing nothing but endless promises from the politicians about all the changes they are going to make in the future. The irony, of course, is if half of the things that they are promising now were done by our existing government, then we probably wouldn’t be staring down the barrel of a Labour government.
So, it seems likely that there will be a change of government but what difference will it make to your business?
Traditionally Conservatives have been the low touch, pro-business and low tax party but if you ask me, they have been anything but. Pro-business? You could have fooled me, popularist maybe. National minimum wage for a 21-year-old is now £11.44 an hour – this will cost an employer over £26,000 a year.
So, who is the true pro-business party? The Labour Party MP for chancellor is Rachel Reeves, who recently said, “Labour will be both pro-worker and pro-business” – a neat trick if you can pull it off.
Reform are gathering in popularity, despite Nigel Farage seemingly dodging missiles all over the country. Reform’s business policies seem entirely sensible:
- Free over 1.2 million small and medium sized businesses from Corporation Tax
Lift the minimum profit threshold to £100k. Reduce the main Corporation Tax Rate from 25% to 20%, then to 15% from year 5. - Abolish IR35 rules to support Sole Traders
Britain’s self-employed often work longer hours and take more risks. Many have no pension and receive no sick pay. - Lift the VAT threshold to £120,000
Free up small entrepreneurs from red tape. - Abolish business rates for high street based small & medium firms
But it’s easy to promise when you are only an up and coming opposition party, whether they would be achievable and feasible are another matter.
So whichever party is elected on 4th July, will it make a difference to your business? For most businesses the answer is, probably not. You will still have to get up, go to work and build a business. You will deal with whatever political and financial environment is out in front of you. Some businesses will struggle, some will thrive, and others will cease to exist. Either way life will go on and we will be there to support you.
