Well there we go. Pub Campaigners have been relentless since October in trying to drill home what this April Budget is going to do to the hospitality industry. Some reports have suggested that we could lose up to 9,000 pubs within the year coming.
Yet once again our pleas for support fell on deaf ears.
Ironically, Reeves’ budget is aimed at focusing on getting people back into employment! Sorry?! what jobs do you think people are going to be able to access when our businesses fall apart. It means Billions of Pounds of Income Tax and NI, Corporation Tax, VAT going down the drain- and guess what- MORE people accessing benefits not less.
Of course we need to relook at the people who haven’t got a days work in them because they’re simply bone idle. But has anyone actually addressed why we have masses of people with this mentality? Is it because the people have been failed by Government and its predecessors? Is it because people are disillusioned and watch people who go out to work moaning about being sick of feeling like they work for fuck all? Seriously, what does that portray to the upcoming young people hitting the employment market or those thinking about getting a job or returning to work. I personally think it just justifies their feelings- and I cant say right now I can fault them for feeling that way!
What utopian snow covered chocolate box land are Government living in whereby virtually annihilating small businesses prosperity and longevity is actually going to help get people off benefits? It couldn’t be more counterintuitive if you tried! Yes small businesses are very obviously ‘small’; but they often play an extremely important part in keeping local people in work; providing innovative services with grassroots entrepreneurs and serving our communities often at ground level all whilst contributing to the countries coffers. We often ‘fill in the gaps’ where Big Corporates aren’t really hitting the spot or find it too low key for their attentions. Il also say people love a family owned business that’s been going for years and we don’t tend to be registered to Hedge-funds in the Cayman Islands!!
So yes, Small businesses as a whole are vitally important to this countries economy and employment actually. It’s not all about Supermarkets and Net Zero; it’s about growth and sustainability from the bottom up. I cant blame independent shop owners, publicans, trades and such if they want to just shut shop and give up. Why are we, the smallest of the business fry, taking on this burden of being the scape goat for politicians to avert upsetting the Corporates who often aren’t even 100% committed to paying UK Tax?
Just watch how when the Government rhetoric will change when large numbers of once were thriving small businesses simply fail. They will twist it back onto us as a way of covering up their inadequacies in addressing the real problems and of course, give them a new reason to blame the high level of unemployment in this country.
LornaSpeaks 
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