66-67_The Budget.qxp_Grid 01/11/2024 14:04 Page 2
Industry Opinion
BUDGETARY MEASURES There was a lot riding on Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ shoulders, delivering the first Autumn Budget under a Labour Government for 14 years, but it was never going to be an easy ride. As always with politics, opinions and views differ from person to person, depending on their respective beliefs and circumstances. PG treads the rocky path and shares some of the views on the Budget from those in the greeting card community. While a penny off a pint down the pub went down well, and few in our sector have been clobbered with the rise in taxes for private jets, many in the greeting card industry have blasted the Autumn Budget, hailing the £40billion tax raid as anti-High Street and anti-small businesses. While some aspects, such as the move to tackle the surging level of shoplifting were welcome, the hike in employers’ national insurance contributions and reduction in the level at which it kicks in, minimum wage increases, and delay in the retail business rates overhaul not surprisingly came under fire. Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ defence of claims that £25bn will be raised by the NI increase, has already been shot down by the Institute For Fiscal Studies think tank which says businesses will scale back wage rises: “It will result in lower wages, reducing the amount raised from employer NI and reducing employee NI and income tax revenues. That takes the net revenue down to some £16bn.” British Independent Retailer Association ceo Andrew Goodacre said: “This budget betrays every independent retailer who has 66 PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE
fought to keep their business alive through recent challenges. It's not just disappointing – it's potentially catastrophic for Britain's High Streets.”
Above: Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ first Autumn Budget did not grant wishes. Below middle: BIRA’s Andrew Goodacre called it the “worst budget” for indie retailers. Bottom: Rachel Reeves in full flow.
Indie retailer and PG columnist David Robertson, who runs the family business JP Pozzi in Buckie and Elgin, pulled no punches in his assessment: “For me a budget should be about give and take. There should of course be some things that challenge us but, overall, we should feel positive it is not going to seriously affect our business. Sadly, this budget leaves me with little to be enthusiastic about and a real worry about where we find the money to pay all these increases. To me this feels very much like an anti-High Street and anti-small business budget – quite simply we are left with little positives to cling to.” Referring to the important issue of business rates, David elucidated that “in Scotland we’ve had not had any discount from the Scottish government anyway so the fact that England continues to get a discount even at 40% is without doubt an unfair, uneven playing field.” However, getting to the bit which really will impact on his cost base, David is outraged by “The rise in NI and the drop in threshold alongside another larger increase in minimum wage are three real body blows which will hurt us greatly. It’s a 15% increase in two years to the minimum wage rate and I don’t see the government giving this to any of the doctors or teachers.” As he points out: “The Govt says that they want to support small business, but this is nothing more than lip service as they neither understand nor care about the working man who incidentally owns or has built a small business.”