Owners of start-up firms prefer to talk to their banks when it comes to professional advice, rather than government’s dedicated SME support service, Business Link.
This is the government’s own admission: Just 5% of entrepreneurs feel the need for Business Link’s advice whilst 16% head for their financiers. This from a poll of 10,000 small businesses, carried out by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.
Next on the list were Accountants who would be the natural choice of 12% of new businesses. 6% engaged consultants and 5% checked in with their solicitor.
The opinion poll also looked at how well small business interests were supported by ministers and government at large.
A third of respondents believed government paid no attention to the interests of new businesses. A whopping 50% felt only a little interest was shown by ministers. Only 1 in 10 viewed government’s concern for them as ’sufficient’.
Businesszone.co.uk’s editor, Dan Martin, reports that The Federation of Small Business’s confidence in the government is at an all time low.
Shriti Vadera, Business Minister, intends to deliver an enterprise white paper in April aimed at unlocking “the talents of more people in business”.
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