FSB calls on government to impede HMRC

Date: 30th April 2010

The government should make it harder for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to close down small businesses that are having difficulty paying their taxes.

This is the view of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) which said HMRC should be more lenient in order for small enterprises to stay afloat.

FSB national chairman John Walker said: "The FSB urges the next government to look at ways to help small firms stay afloat.

"This could be achieved by making it harder for HMRC to close small businesses down if they are late on tax payments, better access to affordable finance and credit and for government and big business to pay invoices on time to ensure a steady cash-flow in the small business community."

The expert's comments follow the publication of recovery specialist Begbies Traynor's latest Red Flag report, which revealed that £55 billion is owed to suppliers and creditors by 160,000 British firms.

According to the report, the same number of businesses admitted facing "critical" or "significant" financial problems.

Posted by Emily Smith