In a bid to champion small businesses and contribute to a fairer, greener economy, the Swindon Area Green Party is urging the government to introduce a Small Business Saturday support package.
The goal is to empower local firms as they navigate their journey towards sustainability.
Parish Councillor Bradley Williams, an advocate for supporting independent businesses and social enterprises in Swindon, said “I visit independent businesses and social enterprises all around Swindon, and so many tell me that they want to make a success of becoming more sustainable. It’s great to see already the community is coming together to support such businesses, through events like community markets.
“But they need the government to get behind them and offer the right support.
“We need a competitively fair transition to net zero that helps rather than hinders the small and independent businesses that bring so much benefit to our local community.
Green Party parliamentary candidate for North Swindon, Andy Bentley, echoed this sentiment, calling for decisive government action to assist small businesses in their green transition.
“The Green Party’s alternative Autumn Statement identified £30 billion that could be raised by making the super-rich pay a little more tax. Just £3 billion of that could be used to double funding for Green Transition Grants – to help small businesses prepare for and make the most of the opportunities of greening the economy” he said.
This Small Business Saturday, the Green Party is calling for the following initiatives:
- £3 Billion Green Transition Grants: An additional £3 billion in Green Transition Grants for small businesses to help them prepare for and take advantage of the opportunities offered by greening the economy.
- Decarbonisation Support: Assistance for small businesses to decarbonise their transport needs. Independent traders and tradespeople need access to electric vans and other low-carbon transport solutions on the same terms as large companies.
- Employee Wellbeing Support: Support for small businesses to improve employee wellbeing. Measures should include exempting all childcare providers in England from business rates.
- VAT Reform and Covid Repayment Suspension: Reform of VAT to support small businesses and suspension of Covid repayments. The government must reform our VAT system so that it differentially supports smaller shops and businesses compared to larger and online businesses. Likewise, there should be an immediate suspension of Covid loan repayments to provide much-needed relief for businesses.
