The director general of the Institute of Export & International Trade (IOE&IT) has written to the Chancellor, ahead of this month’s Spring Budget, calling on him to maintain the country’s competitive international advantage in key sectors such as services.
Marco Forgione delivered the letter during a meeting at no 11 Downing Street yesterday (1 March) with Jeremy Hunt’s special advisers.
Three core issues
Speaking outside Downing Street afterwards, Forgione said it was a “very positive meeting” and that the Treasury “is very keen to hear from the IOE&IT’s members and the wider trader community”.
In his letter, Forgione noted three core issues for the Chancellor to address in the Spring Budget:
- UK exports
- Smaller businesses
- Levelling up through trade
Exports
On exports, he said that it was important for the government to capitalise on the “competitive advantage” the country has in the services sector, saying that it should ensure that the “UK remains an environment where creative services and R&D are actively encouraged”.
He said “fiscal incentives are also vital” to ensure businesses can “acquire the skills, tools and services to trade internationally”.
MSMEs
Forgione also said that “short-term fiscal incentives” should be considered for MSMEs (micro, small and medium sized enterprises) that export.
He added that the IOE&IT has “repeatedly called for a cross-department MSME taskforce” to address the “insufficient skills and funding” available for would-be MSME exporters, but added that it welcomed the recent merger of BEIS and DIT into the new Department for Business and Trade.
Levelling up
Forgione also called on Hunt to consider “policy which might enable trade agreements and broader trade policy mechanisms to be tailored to support” the government’s Levelling Up agenda.
He pointed out that the North East of England had the lowest number of exporters of any region in England in Q3 2022 with only 1,640 exporters; London has 13,345.
Pivotal budget
Hunt is scheduled to deliver the Spring Budget – his first official Budget as Chancellor – on 15 March and has warned that there will be few tax cuts or spending giveaways in his bid to control inflation and stabilise public finances, according to the Times.
The IOE&IT Daily Update will be providing on-the-day updates on the Budget and reaction from the international trade community, including Forgione