Beckie Hart: The pathway to recovery and beyond for business

Firms across Yorkshire and the Humber are teetering on the brink and in dire need of a boost; they are counting on the Government to deliver one.

That is why the CBI has this week written to the Chancellor to outline a series of recommendations which we believe can help steer the UK towards recovery and beyond.

The immediate imperative is an extension to Covid support measures.

Furlough, business rates holidays and VAT deferrals are due to end on April 30. With the country currently locked down and a return to tiered restrictions likely to follow, businesses need to know what comes next so they can plan ahead.

The CBI has asked for measures to be extended until the end of June, and only relaxed in tandem with the economy reopening.

Looking to recovery itself, we urge bravery and vision from Government to implement systemic reform where needed and recognise opportunity where it exists.

Establishing a re-energised business landscape – where endeavour, ambition and innovation are rewarded – can make business the catalyst which triggers wider recovery.

Firstly, we have called for action on climate change to be at the very heart of Britain’s recovery. A new focus on the shift to zero emission vehicles, fresh jobs in clean industries, a review of fuel duty taxes.

With the UK set to host COP-26 this year, we must be clear and unabashed in our ambition to lead the world in meeting the climate challenge.

Comprehensive reform of our outdated business rates system is essential.

Unsustainable universal business rates must be remodelled to drive much-needed investment in energy efficiency and level-up business investment across regions.

Reliefs for firms growing their energy efficiency and productivity would loosen the financial shackles which hinder investment.

Measures to encourage and reward innovation can further turbo-charge recovery.

New R&D tax credit for capital investments, and incentives for SMEs to adopt digital technologies, can be transformational.

There must also be recognition of the fact that business needs are changing – and that change has only accelerated during the pandemic.

Jobs and skills continue to evolve at breakneck pace, and lack of access to skills can be one of the biggest contemporary challenges for our region’s employers.

Dropping the Apprenticeship Levy in favour of a flexible Skills and Training Levy, and transforming Job Centres into Jobs and Skills Hubs, can create new opportunity.

These measures have plenty in common. Job creation. Security. Reward.

They encourage businesses to aim high and think big, to be fearless in the pursuit of progress, and to deliver opportunity and prosperity in return.

This all sounds far away and fanciful right now, with the country locked down and businesses straining every sinew to stay afloat.

But if the pandemic has afforded us one unexpected positive, it has been the time to properly take stock and re-evaluate.

Yes, these aims are ambitions, but they are realistic and achievable. The Government has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with business throughout this pandemic, protecting jobs and livelihoods.

Now, with the end in sight, they must finish the job.

This means supporting businesses beyond the pandemic and fostering an environment which enables them to spearhead our drive for a stronger, fairer, and greener future economy.

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Thank you

James Mitchinson