North-East Business
Government urged to support North-East entrepreneurs
8:00am Friday 3rd February 2012
THE government can kick start the economy by backing the region's small businesses, campaigners said last night.
The Real Life Entrepreneurs campaign launched by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has received support from Bishop Auckland MP Helen Goodman who has signed up to become one of its champions.
Supporters of the initiative, which highlights the everyday men and women that have taken a risk and started their own business, last night called on the Government to help entrepreneurs in the North-East by increasing routes to finance, simplifying the tax system, tackling late payment and incentivising job creation.
With economic growth having stalled and the government looking to the private sector to put the economy back onto firm ground, the FSB believes that the UK's 4.8 million entrepreneurs can play a key role in driving the recovery.
Ms Goodman, who ran her own business prior to taking a seat in Parliament, explained why she was eager to lend her support.
"Small businesses are the backbone of the regional economy and make a substantial contribution to the area," she said. "I feel that the Tory-led coalition government should take greater heed of the issues raised by the FSB in their campaign.
"Before becoming an MP I was the director of my own small voluntary sector organisation and experienced firsthand the difficulties faced by small businesses in relation to regulatory burdens and access to funding.
"In the current bleak financial climate the North East needs talented individuals with entrepreneurial flair now more than ever - to kick start the regional economy out of the doldrums.
"Small businesses have a vital role to play in securing the regions future growth and competitiveness - after all the small business of today are the multinationals of tomorrow."
Ted Salmon, FSB North East Regional Chairman, said: "We are delighted that Helen Goodman MP has signed up as a Real Life Entrepreneur champion and we are jointly committed to supporting real life entrepreneurs to grow and prosper. "By celebrating the successes that local entrepreneurs are achieving in the area will help to inspire more to take the plunge and start up in business.
"We both recognise the hard work that the regions entrepreneurs do for the local area and with more support will help the local economy to grow."
More information is available at www.fsb.org.uk
The FSB is calling on the Government to:
*Increase the routes to finance by creating more competition in the banking sector.
*Improve cash-flow by ensuring that small business are paid on time.
*Adopt new approach to regulation and cut down the amount of red tape small firms have to plough through.
*Create a simplified tax system for small businesses that find it complex and burdensome.
*Incentivise small firms to take on staff and so help tackle high unemployment.
*Open up export markets so that small businesses can really begin to grow the economy.