At the Credit Protection Association, many of our members have suffered at the hands of late payers. Our debt recovery services may have got them repaid, but small business confidence has suffered as a result, and our late payment culture needs to be dissolved to help our economic future.

Andrew Griffith made this announcement at Credit Strategy’s Parliamentary Reception, sponsored by Capita, which was held at the Houses of Parliament last week. Lenders, regulators, debt purchasers, debt collection agencies and trade associations attended the event to listen to a range of political speakers.

Griffiths said the government is very clear about the fact it needs to act upon the issue of late payments: “I think we all recognise that if we want a healthy economy with a strong and robust supply chain then tackling late payments is a huge priority for us as a government, for businesses and the credit industry.”

The Parliamentary Reception is part of Credit Week, also sponsored by Capita, a series of conferences, meetings and industry networking, taking place between March 12 and 16.

As hard as business owners work to keep on top of unpaid invoices, and nevermind how hard credit managers work to get the late ones repaid, businesses will continue to pay late until it becomes law not to. The small business commissioner, Paul Uppal, previously tried to change the way businesses pay, but little has changed. It is imperative that this discussion leads to strategy, and that strategy leads to a culture shift.

Here at the Credit Protection Association, our debt recovery services get our members repaid, and our credit management products keep out the late payers. Nonetheless, paying your customers on time is still not considered the ‘norm’. Just as it would be inappropriate for a business owner to fall asleep at his desk, or throw paper aeroplanes around the office, it should be unacceptable to pay your suppliers and customers late.