Small Business Financial News Round-up - Jan 15
by Startacus Admin
Welcome to the Startacus monthly financial news round-up, brought to you by Sophie Turton of Crunch Online Accounting.
It’s the beginning of a new year and things are looking optimistic, especially for small business and startups. However, a lot lies in the balance – elections are fast approaching and government parties are expected to step-up in support of Britain’s vanguard of self-employed. Let’s take a look 
at the financial highlights so far:
Conservatives pledge more startup loans if re-elected
David Cameron pledged to increase Startup Loans lending to £300 million with the aim of supporting another 50,000 fledgling businesses, should the Conservatives be re-elected this spring.
The scheme has already helped 25,000 businesses get off the ground, lending almost £130 million, and has proven the most popular and well-used of the government’s small business support schemes.
Yet, government departments are harming SME suppliers
Despite Cameron hailing the Tories as the ‘party for small business’, government departments are failing to meet their payment obligation to the small businesses supplying services to them, a National Audit Office report found.
The NAO found that 80% of invoices raised by SMEs took between three and seven weeks to settle, breaking the government’s pledge to pay 80% of all undisputed invoices within five working days.
The NAO’s Amyas Morse commented:
“UK businesses told us they welcome the government’s commitment to pay invoices early. However, there has been a disappointing lack of effort by government to check whether the implementation of the policy is actually helping SMEs.
“We are also seriously concerned about the prompt payment performance figures publicly reported by departments. These were overstated by the four departments we looked at. It remains to be seen whether the changes proposed in the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill and secondary legislation will be enough to bring about improvements, not just in public sector payment practices but the private sector as well.”
Unemployment falls while wages continue to rise
The number of unemployed people in the UK fell by 58,000 in the three months leading up to November 2014, according to the most recent Office for National Statistics Labour Market Report. 
The drop marked a six year low, pushing the unemployment rate down to 5.8% of the adult working population. The number of people claiming job seeker’s allowance also fell by 26,700 to 867,000, the 26th consecutive monthly reduction.
This news was boosted by the fact that wages were also up 1.8% from the year before. This is the second consecutive period that both measures of earnings have been above the level of inflation and shines an optimistic light on the first quarter of 2015.
There were more UK startups than ever in 2014
2014 was a record year for companies formed in the UK, with a total of 581,173 businesses registered with Companies House, beating the 2013 record by almost 50,000.
London was, unsurprisingly, cited as the most entrepreneurial city with Birmingham coming in second. The report, commissioned by Startup Britain, also shows an increase in entrepreneurial activity in regional cities, which could indicate a move away from Britain’s London-centric economy.
Follow me on Twitter @turtonsophie
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you would like to receive our startup themed newsletter, full of the latest startup opportunities, events, news, stories, tips and advice, then sign up here.
Glasgow-based This is Milk seeks investment for Neve Learning, its cloud-based Ed-Tech platform that has inclusivity and accessibility at its core.
.jpg)
With the UK facing a clear digital skills gap, Amy Caton, Digital Talent and Impact Senior Manager at BT Group shares some insights on what businesses should do to close that divide.
The lowdown on Berlin-based Beazy and its innovative solution that helps teams to plan, produce and deliver creative content and helps businesses to connect with talented content creators.
Huckletree's new Web3 HQ aims to put London’s West End at the forefront of Britain’s tech superpower ambitions.
Leading sports marketing platform, OpenSponsorship announces move into music sector, the first new vertical industry for the trans-Atlantic martech business.
.jpg)
Kingussie High School scoops first place for Junior and Senior categories at this year’s Growing Future Assets Competition.
The lowdown on Manchester-based Arctic Shores and its innovative recruitment solution to help candidate potential count as much as skills and experience.
With the demand for tattoo removal now greater than ever, specialist NAAMA Studios makes a bid for a further £11m in funding.
By combining machine-learning with zero-party data, new tool launched by MarTech startup Qudo ends the ‘era of assumption’ for marketers.
Want to be your own boss and earn some money whilst travelling? Here are a few ways to do just that...
Published on: 2nd February 2015
If you would like to enable commenting via your Startacus account, please enable Disqus functionality in your Account Settings.
- Neurodiverse learning and training platform Neve shares major six-figure investment opportunity 22nd Mar 2023 Glasgow-based This is Milk seeks investment for Neve Learning, its cloud-based Ed-Tech platform that has inclusivity and accessibility at its core.
- Huckletree opens new London hub for tech companies pioneering Web3 solutions 16th Mar 2023 Huckletree's new Web3 HQ aims to put London’s West End at the forefront of Britain’s tech superpower ambitions.
- OpenSponsorship making its move into the music sector 16th Mar 2023 Leading sports marketing platform, OpenSponsorship announces move into music sector, the first new vertical industry for the trans-Atlantic martech business.
- Scottish Highlands Home to the Next Generation of Future Female Investors 15th Mar 2023 Kingussie High School scoops first place for Junior and Senior categories at this year’s Growing Future Assets Competition.
