Following its mention in the King’s Speech, the Small Business Protections Bill has now been put before Parliament.
The Bill introduces measures that are designed to help alleviate some of the difficulties smaller businesses face in getting paid. They include: - A 60-day cap on payment terms for large businesses paying small suppliers. - Mandatory interest on late payments. This is to be set at 8% above the Bank of England base rate. - A prohibition on withholding retention payments in construction contacts. - New powers for the Small Business Commissioner to be able to investigate businesses that have poor payment practices, arbitrate in disputes and fine persistent late payers. - A requirement for the boards or audit committees of large companies to publish explanations of late payment performance and what steps are being taken to improve.
Smaller businesses will be keenly watching the Bill’s progress through its Parliamentary processes to see when these measures will come into force.
HMRC have proposed a new criminal offence for making reckless, untrue statements or declarations about what's known as 'direct taxes' - Income Tax, National Insurance and the like. For Customs and Excise and VAT ('indirect taxes'), it is already possible to prosecute individuals who make untrue statements or submit incorrect documents either knowingly or recklessly, without the need to prove dishonesty. The penalties for such offences can be severe, including substantial fines and imprisonment. The direct tax regime does not currently contain an equivalent offence.
A new Freedom of Information (FOI) request has discovered that health and safety violations cost British employers over £44 million per year. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) revealed that serious breaches have resulted in an increasing number of prosecutions between 2023 and 2025.