Policy news
At Family Business UK we actively advocate for responsible and sustainable family business governance and leadership. We provide a unified and strong voice which influences the direction of government policy and helps shape the environment family businesses operate in through proactive engagement with government and regulators on policy reform. As the General Election approaches, we have been busy engaging politicians from across all political parties, to ensure they understand how central family business is to our future and success as a country. In recent months we’ve seen a significant increase in our engagement and profile across Westminster and White- hall, with FBUK representatives now sitting on the Govern- ment’s Small Business Council, and DWP’s Occupational Health Taskforce, amongst other groups. We’ve been attending meetings with ministers, shadow ministers, and officials on a wide range of issues including: business sup- port, prompt payment, defined benefit pension schemes, apprenticeships, training, tax and regulation. Our work is not limited to Westminster either. In recent months we’ve held a series of meetings with Members of the Scottish Parliament, including party spokespeople on business, the economy and work.
Business Property Relief (BPR) to the family business community and its long-term success.
We have been clear that BPR is not a ‘loophole’. It was specifically designed to facilitate the handing of a family business from one generation to the next without creating a significant Inheritance Tax (IHT) charge which the business would be unable to pay. Removing it would have a catastrophic impact on the family business sector, which provides jobs for approximately 14 million people in the UK. Over 85,000 family SMEs are expected to transfer ownership of their business to a new generation each year. BPR affords these firms an option to plan for a stable succession while maintaining ownership stability. It also plays a key role in ensuring that these small and medium firms can focus on scaling up their businesses. Around 77% of family SMEs are estimated to be first generation businesses. Without BPR these family firms would lose the opportunity to grow under stable ownership and successfully transition to the next generation. BPR is a perfect example of a relief that achieves exactly what it was designed to: enabling family business to plan for the long term and ensure jobs and prosperity are protected from one generation to the next. Family Business UK is the leading organisation making the case for preserving Inheritance Tax reliefs for family-owned businesses. If you would like to find out how to get more actively involved in our work in this area, email info@familybusinessuk.org
Family Business UK joins new Small Business Council
Family Business UK is delighted to have been appointed to the Government’s new Small Business Council. Chaired by Small Business Minister, Kevin Hollinrake, the Council will work alongside the Prime Minister’s Business Council to tackle the key issues facing smaller firms. The Council will be a powerful voice for small businesses within government and has been tasked with overseeing three key areas for small firms – access to finance, skills and support as well as removing barriers. Inheritance tax and family firms As we head in to the General Election there has been significant speculation about the future of Inheritance Tax, and its associated reliefs.
We have been actively engaging Conservative Ministers and Labour teams to convey the vital importance of
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