Shropshire's 'battered' businesses hoping for good news in Chancellor's spring statement
Shropshire’s ‘battered and bruised’ business community is in desperate need of some good news from the Chancellor’s spring statement, according to the county’s chamber of commerce.
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Chancellor Rachel Reeves is later today (Wednesday, March 26) set to unveil her spring statement in which she will deliver an update on the state of the UK economy and the government’s spending plans.
The Chancellor, who visited Telford firm RBSL this week, is expected to announce further cuts to welfare benefits and government departments in the statement, due to be delivered at around 12.30pm.
Shropshire Chamber of Commerce chief executive Ruth Ross has called on the Chancellor to "pull every lever possible" to help the county's under-fire firms.
“Employers hold the key to unlocking the economic growth that the Government is seeking – but they can’t do this if they feel they are being hammered with extra costs,” she said.
“Rachel Reeves needs to pull every lever possible this week, and in the coming months, to give Shropshire businesses an incentive to step up their investing, recruiting and exporting.”
From next week, firms face what Ms Ross described as an "unpalatable menu" of higher National Insurance and minimum wage bills, alongside the spectre of potential American tariffs.
“The results of our latest quarterly economic survey showed that the fallout from the November budget is hanging over the Shropshire business community like a black cloud,” she said.
“One of the biggest concerns voiced in the survey was April’s upcoming rise in employer National Insurance contributions, and companies across several sectors talks of having to consider redundancies.”
“We support the British Chambers of Commerce’s call for the chancellor to outline a wider tax roadmap, which includes national insurance and business rates, giving firms a clearer idea of when costs will be lowered.”
