A relief fund worth £300 million set up for small businesses, and by Chancellor, Philip Hammond, has failed to do its job. The fund, which was set up to support small firms struggling under business rates rises has failed to pass on tens of millions of pounds 300 days after its launch. A large majority of the councils that were allocated the funds have yet to pass on any money to local firms. This is a huge disappointment to small firms who saw this scheme as a way to recover funding. Many of our members at the Credit Protection Association are small business owners and are struggling under the new business rates regime.
This research was conducted by Gerald Eve, the property consultancy, who found that more than £70 million of the £175 million allocated to councils has yet to be passed on to local firms.
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has announced that some of its members are still waiting for the essential funding.
As a result, Mike Cherry, FSB chairman, has berated the scheme for offering”false hope” to firms, as many have been forced to sell, hand-on or close down business.
“It is really shocking that local council’s schemes had given out very little, and in some instances none, of the money they’ve been allocated”, Mike Berry added.