§ Mr. David ShawTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the impact of(a) his policies and (b) the work of his Department in helping small businesses in the past 12 months as against the previous 12 months; and if he will publish the performance indicators by which his Department monitors the impact and the statistical results of such monitoring. [39150]
§ Mrs. Angela KnightThe Government recognise the crucial role played by small firms in the UK economy and aim to help them by providing sound economic conditions—keeping inflation and interest rates low; reducing legislative administration and taxation burdens; and, where appropriate, provide direct assistance in the form of specialist advice and support and easing access to finance.
Particular Budget measures aimed to boost small businesses include: cutting the small companies rate of corporate tax and the basic rate of income tax; reducing employers' national insurance contributions from April 1997; reducing the qualifying age for capital gains tax retirement relief; improving transitional relief for smaller properties whose rates bill are rising following the 1995 revaluation; reducing class 4 national insurance contributions by the self-employed and withdrawing the 50 per cent. tax relief from these contributions; increasing the VAT threshold; introducing a deregulation package; and introducing a tax code rewritten in simple user-friendly language.
These measures build on last year's package to costs job cuts and ease access to finance.