HEWITT NEEDS TO ADMITT WHAT BROWN WILL NOT DURING NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Sun 27th Apr 2003

Ahead of the Sunday Times' sponsored National Small Business Week, the Liberal Democrats have urged Trade & Industry Secretary Patricia Hewitt not to fall into the same trap as Chancellor Gordon Brown by denying the problems that are facing small business.

Labour need to recognise that all is not rosy for small businesses. The Forum for Private Business submission to the Budget showed that small businesses spend an average of 10 hours per week dealing with red tape with 3 hours alone on Employment regulation. 82.9% want the employment regulatory burden reduced.

Only by acknowledging the difficulties caused by the burden of red tape, by Gordon Brown's over-complex tax system, and by soaring insurance costs will Patricia Hewitt be able, in her opening speech on Monday, to address the real concerns of small businesses. Brian Cotter MP, the Liberal Democrat Spokesman on Small Business said:

"There is no point in Patricia Hewitt painting the same over-optimistic picture of the economy that Gordon Brown did in the Budget. She will simply not be believed by small businesses."

"The Government is choosing to ignore the consistent messages coming from business people, who want to get on with running their business, creating wealth and opportunities for their staff.

"Unless Patricia Hewitt commits to cutting red tape, simplifying the tax system, including the unfair business rate, and tackling rising Employers' Liability Insurance, she will see many in her audience shaking their heads."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

The Liberal Democrat Alternative Budget set out the actions we expect the Government to take to relieve the burden on business:

Business: We will radically restructure the Department of Trade and Industry. Its core will be the Cabinet Office Deregulation Unit with a brief to scrap unnecessary regulation affecting business and the public sector, and to commission independent, published, regulatory impact assessments across all government departments.

It could also be required to assess the budget contribution to tax simplification. It will help small business essentially by providing a 'one stop shop' for regulation. We will abolish five regulations instantly, as part of a longer term plan to simplify the regulatory system. These are to:

1. Simplify all 100 fire regulations into one measure

2. Simplify the Working Time Directive

3. Abolish the necessity of businesses to provide information for statistics where they are unnecessary. Business will not, for example, be required to report on trade transactions within the EU Single Market or the working time of individual employees

4. Stop businesses from doing the government's work for it - for instance WFTC and its successors should be paid through the existing benefits system.

5. Repeal UK consumer protection legislation which duplicates EU legislation