Businesses 'ignore government advice'
Jan 30 2009
Small businesses do not find advice on legislation from the government useful and prefer to pay for someone else to provide this information, according to a new report.
The government-funded Anderson Report, produced by Sarah Anderson, an entrepreneur and former small business counsellor, surveyed companies and found they have little confidence in the advice on health and safety and employment laws.
She says many of these firms do not know where this guidance is and so three-quarters choose to pay for information, which costs at least £1.4 billion per year.
'Improving the quality of, and access to, government advice is vital if we want to see better understanding of, and compliance with, the law,' Anderson adds.
The expert says the majority of small firms feel the government should do more to enable them to comply with the law.
Proposals in the report include a telephone advice service and creating a single access point for all government advice.
Commenting on the findings, David Frost, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, says it is crucial for the UK's competitiveness for the government to issue this clear advice.
Comment by Michael Moor
Wednesday 4th March 2009Most important, we need a single access point for all government- business information exchange. It would not only be simpler, but would highlight how much unnecessary duplication and complexity has been allowed to develop!
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Comment by Marc Barber
Thursday 5th March 2009It goes beyond this though, don't you think? Look at how convoluted a process it remains to try and find information concerning grants and finance. The level of bureaucracy and the differences in how that bureaucracy functions between regions and agencies is staggering. If not mind boggling. Perhaps the fear is that, if centralised, it would see too many advisers, liaison officers and government officials out of work....
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