§ Mr. David ShawTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on the achievements of his Department and his policies in helping small businesses over the last 12 months relative to the previous 12 months; and if he will publish the performance indicators by which his Department monitors those achievements and the statistical results of such monitoring.
§ Miss WiddecombeThe Government continue to place a high priority on helping small businesses, through improvements to the business climate, through deregulation and through specific programmes of support and assistance.
Measures operated by the Department specifically to assist small business include increasing, from April 1992, the qualifying threshold for small employer's relief—SER—for statutory sick pay from £15,000 to £16,000.
Other measures aimed at business in general, which includes small business, include:
(i) Establishing a group of employers and employers' representatives specifically to consider the impact on employers of a combined Autumn and Budget statement in December. Small businesses are recognised as an important group to be consulted and are represented on the group.(ii) Increasing the level below which deductions under pay-as-you-earn—PAYE—and national insurance contributions—NIC—can be paid to Inland Revenue quarterly rather than monthly to £450 for deductions made in periods951Wbeginning after 5 April 1992. Twenty-five thousand businesses should benefit from this increase, bringing the total number of businesses who could he helped by this measure to 725,000—more than half of all employers.The Department has a system to monitor proposals which have an impact on business, to ensure that the needs of small businesses arc taken into account, although there are no performance indicators specifically for monitoring achievements in this area. However, we attach particular importance to action taken to help small firms and will continue to explore further ways of doing so.