A call has been made for the new Labour government to consider training opportunities for the workforce of tomorrow as key to future economic growth.
Following the result of the General Election, Steve Harcourt, director at Prime Accountants and President of Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, has set out the priorities which he believes small businesses would like Sir Keir Starmer and his new government to consider.
Training the workforce of tomorrow is vital to the region and country’s prosperity, and Steve is calling for this to be supported with apprenticeship opportunities which are better aligned with the working world and more widely promoted.
He said: “When young adults are leaving education, schools and colleges don’t offer much insight into the working world – advice is still geared towards going to university.
“Some young people don’t want to study for a degree, they want to start working and earning – but the apprenticeship system doesn’t seem to be supporting them and isn’t integrated well enough with schools and colleges.
“Careers advice and apprenticeship schemes need to be better managed to cater for the new technology and skills which will be needed in the job market in 10 years’ time.”
Steve said that raising the VAT threshold was a key issue to small businesses, and he is also calling for action on business rates and incentives around sustainable practices.
He said: “The threshold for VAT being really low is restrictive for small businesses – it was increased in the last budget, but it needs to be increased further to prevent limiting small businesses’ capacity to grow.
“Raising the threshold will also relieve small businesses of the additional red tape this brings in to businesses on a quarterly cycle.
“Reform of business rates would encourage more retail and hospitality into High Streets and not penalise businesses for having a town or city centre premises.
“I’d also like to see allowances in the form of additional tax relief for businesses investing in green technology. There are grants available, but currently these vary by region.”
For more information on Prime Accountants, which has offices in Birmingham, Solihull and Coventry, visit https://primeaccountants.co.uk.
