Business news

Changes to EC Sales Lists, proposed from 1 January 2010, have now been crystallised following the EU Council’s adoption of Directive 2008/117/EC and Regulation (37/2009) on 16 December 2008.

The economic downturn has seen a rise in the number of insurance claims made by SMEs facing legal action from employees who are citing unfair dismissal.

The government has unveiled details of plans designed to provide SMEs with easier access to credit and to help with the cash flow problems afflicting many firms as the economic downturn deepens. The support package will see the government guaranteeing up to 50 per cent of some £20 billion worth of bank loans to small businesses.

Britain’s businesses will face enough challenges over the coming months without having to worry unduly about their responsibilities to the Treasury. So the government have launched a brand new Business Payment Support Scheme to give worried entrepreneurs some breathing space. It’s called Time to Pay.

With the banks still reluctant to lend, one possible alternative source of business finance is a government grant.