Hull business call for Spring budget relief

Small businesses in Hull have called for support with bills and added costs ahead of the Chancellor's Spring budget statement.

In what could be the last major financial event before the next general election likely to be held this year, it is expected Jeremy Hunt will announce a 2% National Insurance cut.

For Bea Suddaby, owner of Hull coffee shop Milchig, high energy costs and VAT rates are making life difficult. She said: "Trying to factor in all these extra financial worries is a huge pressure for a small business owner - a few years ago we just didn't have that added pressure.

"For small businesses any spare money you seem to accumulate from your hard work is just wiped out by VAT being at an extraordinarily high rate."

The rate of VAT for businesses has returned to 20% after being dropped to 5% during the pandemic in a bid to help struggling businesses.

Jake Hopkins runs Grubb Deli in Hull and said an energy subsidy would be welcome. He said: "We'd be able to lower prices or at least not raise prices to literally keep the lights on, so that would have a chain effect and then if customers have a cheaper energy bill they'll have more money to spend.

"A lot of the time we have to take it on the chin and take the price increase and but sometimes when the price of ingredients and energy goes up we have to increase prices just to keep the business alive."

A potential 2% reduction in National Insurance is estimated to save the average taxpayer £450 per year - something which some business owners would welcome if it encourages people to go out and spend.

Gary Martin, owner of Out of the Attic Music record shop said: "The cost of living is killing everything, people say: 'I can't afford this because I've got the gas and electric to pay' so it's stopping a lot of people from doing what they want to."

"People are coming in and saying 'I'd like to afford that but I can't afford it this week' so the drop in fuel prices and food prices would help. We need people to come back into town, go around the shops able to afford things to keep all the shops in business."

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