Whoever forms the Government after the General Election must make real progress in cutting red tape that prevents small businesses growing, according to the Kings Hill-based International Association of Book-keepers (IAB).
The call for action comes from IAB Chief Executive Malcolm Trotter after a survey conducted by the organisation found that while over a third of SMEs (36%) are looking to grow and 49% are willing to consider growth, well over half of those (67%) found it burdensome to cope with the associated financial paperwork, while 33% saw it as a real problem.
“Politicians often pay lip service to cutting red tape and yet, despite all the positive statistics about the growth of the UK economy, our survey shows there are still real barriers to growth for the nation’s small businesses,” said Malcolm.
“Given that they are the life blood of any healthy economy, whoever forms the next government needs to take effective action to reduce the administrative red tape that is holding SMEs back.”
Acknowledging that any measures to cut back on red tape would take time to introduce, Malcolm added that there was help available for businesses struggling with day-to-day administration.
“It needn’t fall to one person to both drive the business and keep paperwork and books up to date,” he said. “Bookkeepers are a relatively inexpensive way of taking on support, and not just for the day-to-day upkeep of financial records.
“Members of the IAB, for example, are kept up-to-date with changes in legislation and policies that have an impact on their clients and use that information to advise business owners.”
He added that the nature of their work meant they were also in regular contact with clients and so information was passed in a prompt and timely manner, allowing them to help business owners react to and plan for change, reducing the frustrations of administration.
“Bookkeepers add real value to small businesses and to their sustainable growth,” said Malcolm. “While the business community waits for real action to be taken on cutting burdensome admin, bookkeepers can be a real support to SMEs looking to grow.”
For more information on how a bookkeeper could help your business, or to find one local to you, visit www.iab.org.uk