No ‘immediate cheer’ for East Midlands businesses in Spring Statement

East Midlands business leaders have reacted with muted tones to Chancellor Rachael Reeves’ Spring Statement.

The Statement saw the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) cut its forecast from 2% to 1% for the UK economy this year, before upgrades in the rate of growth in the following years.

James Dickens, managing director of regeneration specialist Wavensmere Homes, which has major schemes across Derby, said that, for property and construction, while the new NPPF and Planning and Infrastructure Bill both set out a positive policy reset, they don’t offer immediate cheer to offset Wednesday’s fiscal event.

He added: “In the meantime, landlords and those hoping to move onto or up the housing ladder are braced for next week’s Stamp Duty increases and higher energy costs. Developers are also grappling with the Building Safety Regulator Gateway process, next year’s introduction of the Building Safety Levy, and the prospect of an additional Mayoral Community Infrastructure Levy for new developments within elected mayor boundaries.

“However, the extra £2bn in grant funding for the development of affordable housing is welcome. The £600m funding across four years to train up to 60,000 engineers, brick layers, and electricians is also helpful, but much more needs to be done to enable housebuilders and developers to bring commercially viable developments forward that can generate new construction jobs.”

Christopher Nieper OBE, the boss of textiles and clothing firm David Nieper, said that, in the ongoing debate about welfare reform, the Government is overlooking one of the greatest economic and social challenges of our time: the one million young people currently not in education, employment, or training (NEET).

He said: “If we are serious about growth, productivity, and national renewal, this is where government action must begin.

“At a time when every pound of public spending is under scrutiny, this is an economic opportunity the government cannot afford to ignore. If even a fraction of these young people from left-behind communities were given the skills and support they need to enter the workforce, the impact on national growth would be transformative. Instead of waiting for young people to fall into long-term welfare dependency, we should be equipping them with the skills to succeed from the outset.”

East Midlands Chamber director of policy and insight, Richard Blackmore, remained “underwhelmed”.

He said: “The projections the Chancellor outlined for how GDP is expected to shape up are a little underwhelming, and with the country’s growth forecast having been halved, the numbers aren’t that inspiring. 

“Significant defence investment will add to the overall economy, and for areas like Derby to receive spending in defence technology and engineering will benefit the city, surrounding areas and supply chains so that’s welcome, but the industrial strategy must be all-encompassing and prioritise all sectors.

“While there was talk of spending on new technical colleges across the country, the current provision from FE colleges in the East Midlands should be bolstered by investment first.

“Our recently published Quarterly Economic Survey revealed corporate taxation to be the number one concern of East Midlands businesses but from next month we’ll be in a position to assess any change to the impact on firms from things like higher National Insurance contributions.  As for investment, all eyes will now be on the government’s comprehensive spending review, where measures supportive of business are essential in order to enable growth.”