SFA leads calls for urgent tax reform

The Chairman of the Small Firms Association (SFA), AJ Noonan believes government intervention is required to help small businesses overcome the hurdles ahead, most notably the Brexit fall-out.

Mr Noonan was addressing more than 500 small businesses at the SFA Annual Lunch last week and said that the outcome of the EU referendum is one factor in the shift of threats to SMEs.

More than two-fifths (41 per cent) of SFA members revealed that the result of the EU referendum vote is already having negative consequences for their business, rising to 68 per cent anticipating a negative impact in the next six months.

There’s no doubting there has been a shift in business confidence too. In May, 66 per cent of small businesses felt the business environment was improving; this has now dropped to 50 per cent. In fact, the number that felt the business environment in Ireland is weakening has risen from three per cent to 18 per cent.

In the latest SFA quarterly sentiment survey, small businesses listed managing wage expectations as their biggest challenge in the coming months.

The Government has already made a commitment to increasing public sector wages by 2.5 per cent, with €150m in increments and €317m under existing commitments under Lansdowne Road.

By contrast, less than two-thirds (60 per cent) of SFA members anticipate being able to increase wages this year, with the average being two per cent.

“We need immediate Government intervention to help sustainable businesses maintain their businesses and the jobs they employ in every part of the country to survive this crisis, with direct stabilisation funding and with new low interest and specialised export credit insurance and trade finance,” said Noonan.

“We need Government to become obsessive about our cost-competitiveness and tax-competitiveness vis-à-vis the UK.”

Date published 21 Nov 2016 | Last updated 21 Nov 2016