British Chambers Of Commerce Pleads With Chancellor

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

27 March 2002

In a pre-budget submission to UK Chancellor Gordon Brown, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), which represents 135,000 firms, yesterday said that if taxes are raised in next month's budget then consumer spending could be hit before the recovery in the world economy is fully established.

A delegation led by Anthony Goldstone, BCC president, told the chancellor on Tuesday afternoon that businesses do not accept that the National Health Service needs more resources to improve the quality of care.

Ian Fletcher, the BCC's head of policy said that manufacturing industry and exporters were beginning to feel the benefit of a global upturn in demand, but warned: "Any increase in national insurance contributions or VAT may help to quell consumer spending before that recovery has really got into its stride."

The BCC's submission calls for a package of tax cuts for business including a permanent 100% tax allowance for capital investment by small and medium enterprises and a cut in stamp duty for business property sales.

Other business organisations will be putting forward their submissions after Easter, and will be busily rewriting them after yesterday's announcement in the House of Commons of an improved R & D tax credit and other business-friendly measures. Presumably the Chancellor has nothing much left to give on the business front, so the ritual pre-budget calls for assistance will have to concentrate on general pleas for lower taxation.

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