Press Releases
Press Release
Forum of Private Business welcomes Brexit clarity as Prime Minister sets out her plans
The Forum of Private business has welcomed the plans set out by the Prime Minister in her Brexit speech as ‘the best business could hope for at this stage’. Having juggled, over the last few month, with the uncertainty of not knowing whether the UK would be following a Norway model, a Sweden model,...
Press Release
Forum calls on Prime Minister to give small businesses Brexit certainty
The Forum of Private Business is calling on Teresa May to give small businesses some clarity of the Government's plans for Brexit when she addresses Parliament. Members of the Forum are reporting a reluctance to invest and grow whilst they are unclear on what the new landscape will look like. Chief...
Press Release
Forum of Private Business sends the Taxman a warning notice
The Forum of Private Business has sounded a note of caution to HMRC following their announcement that they are to reassess their plans to centralise their offices from the existing 170 to 13 regional centres. Chief Executive of the Forum of Private Business, Ian Cass commented, ‘When HMRC first...
Press Release
Blame the Bankers again….£10bn in lost productivity. That’s the Forum of Private Business Christmas Message as they explain Bank Holidays.
This year sees Christmas Day and Boxing Day fall on a weekend, the result of which means that these two festive bank holidays are pushed back to the Monday 27th and Tuesday 28th December 2016. Every year, England and Wales have eight bank holidays - one of the world’s lowest allocations of communal...
Press Release
Forum of Private Business launches Pocket Guide for Small Business Saturday.
To coincide with Small Business Saturday, the Forum is launching a ‘Pocket Guide to Business Start-ups’, and promoting a Small Business Membership Package aimed at the start up market. Small Business Saturday is now in its 4th year and even more businesses are now getting involved. In 2015 more...
Press Release
Forum of Private Business gives Chancellor 6/10 for his Autumn Statement
The Forum of Private Business has given the Chancellor 6/10 for his first Autumn Statement, disappointed that he has not gone further to support small businesses in the post Brexit era. ‘The freeze on fuel duty is welcome for all those businesses involved in transport, and the initiatives to support...
Press Release
Forum of Private Business welcomes HMRC transparency, but remains critical of their query response times.
On behalf of small businesses, the Forum has both challenged and worked with HMRC to improve their performance and transparency. They have not been slow in criticising deficiencies when appropriate, but welcome Jim Harra’s public letter yesterday reassuring small businesses that the digital Tax changes...
Press Release
Forum of Private Business welcomes banks' new declines referral platform
The Forum of Private Business welcomes the launch today of the banks' new referral platform offering businesses who have had their lending request declined, the opportunity to be referred to an alternative lender who may be able to support them. Ian Cass, Chief Executive of the Forum said, '...
Press Release
On the eve of EU Confidence Data the Forum of Private Business members voice their concerns over the Brexit negotiations
Following the Brexit vote and discussions with its members, the Forum of Private Business produced a 10 point Brexit plan which members felt would help business in this time of change and give Government the opportunity to show it recognised the importance of the UK’s small businesses and would grasp...
Press Release
Forum encourages small businesses to fill the Marmite gap
As the impact of the weaker exchange rate hits the major supermarkets like Tesco, the Forum of Private Business is encouraging UK businesses to seize the opportunity and position themselves as preferred Sterling based suppliers. Ian Cass, MD of the Forum commented, 'For too long major retail...