09 Oct 2024Chancellor Rachel Reeves must tackle barriers to growth in the Autumn Budget, says the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). The FSB is calling on the Chancellor to deliver a decisively pro-small business Budget, saying SMEs are 'sick of stagnation'. The business group wants measures to ease employment costs, the removal of barriers to access finance for investment, and the lifting of more small firms out of business rates. It also wants to see an increase in the Employment Allowance so it automatically rises in line with the National Living Wage (NLW) and the reintroduction of a Statutory Sick Pay small employer rebate. The Chancellor should also take action to give small businesses confidence to invest by increasing protection for those who put their houses on the line to grow their business, by stopping the unscrupulous blanket use of personal guarantees on loans, the FSB adds. Tina McKenzie, Policy Chair at the FSB, said: 'For small businesses, the barriers to investment are very personal. To help small businesses invest, employ and grow, we are asking the Chancellor to tackle the barriers that dissuade small businesses from growth. 'Whether that's the huge personal risks entrepreneurs take – often putting their house on the line – to secure finance; committing tens of thousands of pounds to give someone a job; or signing the contract for new premises knowing that business rates bills will land immediately. It's by making these decisions easier for small businesses that Rachel Reeves can help small firms generate the growth we need.'