ABTA has expressed no surprise at the Alistair Darling pre-election budget but voiced satisfaction that the helping hand he extended towards small businesses would benefit many of its members.
The Chancellor has declared that banks with substantial public sector ownership will lend more to businesses in the next 12 months, amounting to £41 billion.
A small business adjudicator role will also be created to enforce judgements on bank lending decisions and there will be a new service to make sure SMEs are treated fairly when applying for loans.
The government has also pledged a temporary increase in the level of small business rate relief and an extension of the entrepreneur’s relief from the first £1m to the first £2m of lifetime gains.
Darling also said there would be better access to tax guidance and flexible tax payment plans so that businesses can manage cash flow more effectively.
ABTA business support manager Daryl Nurthen said: “It would appear businesses could be assisted from this budget. We will investigate what these benefits could be and make sure we provide as much detail as we can so that our Members can access them.”
The organisation said it also took heart from the government’s support for Heathrow expansion and continued support of improvements to the country’s transport infrastructure including Crossrail.
However, the organisation’s pleas for a reform in APD have gone unheard with no changes to the current plans for it to rise again in November.
ABTA head of public affairs Luke Pollard said: “This budget is largely as expected. There are no big headline rises in taxes for the sector, while there is support for businesses. However, whichever government is elected after 6 May will need to tackle deficit, which is likely to mean a combination of public sector cuts and increased taxation still to come.
“As a sector we now need to remain focussed on our Manifesto asks in this area. We want a reform of Air Passenger Duty to a per-plane basis more closely aligned to distance travelled and the efficiency of the aircraft; and reform in consumer financial protection. We will lobby strongly against rises that seek to disproportionately burden our sector with additional taxes."
By Dinah Hatch
