CBI unveils 10 point plan

THE CBI has today unveiled its 10 point plan to keep business working, safeguard jobs and position the economy for recovery.
 
Ahead of the Pre-Budget Report, the UK’s leading business organisation is calling on the Government to take immediate action to help struggling businesses to improve their cash flow, or risk healthy firms going under and unnecessarily prolonging the recession.
 
With credit markets still paralysed, and consumer and business confidence at a low following the banking crisis, the CBI has identified actions the government should take now to give business and the economy an immediate boost.
 
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the CBI calls for measures to ease cash flow to business and a fiscal boost in the Pre-Budget Report, aimed at helping firms retain their staff through the downturn.
 
Richard Lambert, CBI director-general, said: “We need to keep business working to safeguard jobs and we need to act now.
 
“The biggest threat hanging over businesses is cash flow. If they cannot get their hands on the cash and credit they need to go about their day-to-day business, there is a real risk we could see healthy firms going under.
 
“The next six months will be critical. If we are to stand a fighting chance of preventing this recession from becoming longer and more painful, we need to act now to get the credit markets working properly.
 
“The most effective way of supporting economic activity and keeping people in jobs would be a temporary reduction in employer National Insurance contributions.
“But given the poor state of public finances, any fiscal stimulus package will need to go hand-in-hand with a credible framework for getting back on track. This would prevent future generations being burdened with huge levels of debt.
 
“There are also some other relatively quick and painless things the government can do that will provide an immediate boost to business, such as scrapping empty property rates, a temporary freeze on business rates and bringing forward some elements of planned capital spending.
 
“Taken together these measures would help smooth out the bumps on the road to recovery. They would also have a real and immediate impact on confidence, cash flow and the cost of employing people.”