Chancellor George Osborne’s Autumn Statement has been praised as 'a step in the right direction’ by the Federation of Small Businesses.

Chancellor George Osborne’s Autumn Statement has been hailed as ’a step in the right direction’ by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).

The lobbying group is pleased that the government has enhanced the seed enterprise investment scheme which will offer greater reliefs on capital gains and income tax for people investing in small businesses.

This will give start-ups and fledgling businesses the chance to bypass the high street banks and find alternative sources of finance, says the organisation.

FSB chairman John Walker says, ‘Small businesses are struggling to access finance and so the enterprise investment scheme will open up new sources of finance for new and growing businesses. We hope that the banks will pass on the lower interest rates to small businesses and that more finance will be available.’

Measures that will reduce the risk of taking on new staff and increase job creation are welcomed and an overhaul of the employment tribunal system is also a step in the right direction. But with youth unemployment rising to record levels, the FSB says that the Chancellor needs to be more ambitious in incentivising job creation by extending schemes like Work Trials to prevent unemployment becoming entrenched.

Walker concludes, 'Taken as a package, the announcements in the Autumn Statement address many of the concerns raised by small businesses and are therefore to be welcomed. The key now is for the government to be consistent, and set to the task of translating these policy intentions into tangible actions on the ground.’

See also: Rural broadband promised by the autumn