SCC welcomes modest progress in Chancellor’s Spring Statement

Scottish Chambers of Commerce has welcomed Chancellor Philip Hammond’s “low-key” first Spring Statement, but urged that the stabilising economic fundamentals revealed by growth and borrowing figures be used as the springboard for bolder pro-business and pro-growth measures in the Autumn Budget.

The business organisation, whose combined Network represents 11,000 businesses across Scotland also welcomed the various consultations announced by the Chancellor, on issues such as late payment, the future role of cash in the economy, and on tax relief for the self-employed and employees seeking further training.

Liz Cameron OBE, director & chief executive, said SCC Network would be ready to consult with businesses, and participate in the Chancellor’s announced consultation on VAT, to suggest improvements that would reduce bureaucracy for businesses crossing the VAT threshold.

On business rates, where Mr Hammond announced that the next rates revaluation would be brought forward to 2021, SCC said its priority was to minimise potential disruption to businesses paying rates on both sides of the Border.

On the unveiling of the first tranche of spending under the digital Local Full Fibre Networks (LFFN) Challenge Fund, SCC welcomes the £4.5m allocated to the Highlands, hailing it as “a good starter for Scotland”.

But the organisation urged more consideration of how the UK’s Industrial Strategy can help maximise the benefits, including using Scottish Chambers Network as a conduit for a “clustering approach” for businesses that helps pool benefits to the advantage of local economies.

Ms Cameron added: “This was the low-key statement that the Chancellor promised, based on a steady but unspectacular growth outlook, and hinting at future spending, while underlining the Chancellor’s commitment to the vital role of the private sector.”

“We applaud the progress made towards stabilising the UK’s economic fundamentals, particularly the decline in borrowing forecasts, growth in productivity and expected growth in wages, alongside a forecasted decline in inflation.”

“SCC Network will play its part in ensuring that the voice of Scottish business is heard by HM Treasury as it embarks on these important consultations about the long-term future of the economy.”

Meanwhile, the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) in Scotland also welcomed news that the Chancellor was limiting the introduction of new tax policy measures to a single fiscal event – the autumn Budget. The policy had previously been welcomed by the CIOT as a means of providing respite from the treadmill of constant UK tax policy changes.

The need to act less fitfully but more consultatively and effectively was central to the ‘Better Budgets’ report published in January 2017 by the CIOT, the Institute for Government and the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

As the Scottish Parliament adapts to its new tax-raising powers, the Institute said that the UK government’s launch of a number of early stage consultations were as welcome and important as the Scottish Government’s own consultative approach to shaping the country’s devolved taxes.

The CIOT urged Holyrood to keep these processes under review as the new tax powers take effect from next month, citing earlier calls for the introduction of an annual Scottish Finance Bill as a means of strengthening effective scrutiny of Scottish tax proposals and joining up the political and technical debates about tax in Scotland.

Moira Kelly, chair of the CIOT Scottish Technical Committee, said: “Scottish taxpayers and their advisers will be breathing a sigh of relief today thanks to the Chancellor’s decision to stick to his plan to deliver a streamlined Spring Statement light on new tax policy announcements.

“We are already in the midst of a period of significant change in the Scottish tax system. With a little over 3 weeks to go until the start of the new tax year, the last thing that we would have wanted to see would have been a proliferation of new tax measures.

“The commitment to engage and consult on future changes to the tax system is to be welcomed. Consulting on, implementing and reviewing tax legislation – both UK and Scottish – must be an important part of the overall process, especially now that the devolution of tax powers has resulted in practical tax changes.”