In the Queen’s 62nd speech to Parliament yesterday one or two comments stood out which will affect the future of SMEs over the next five years. Starting the speech with a promise of economic security and financial stability the future of businesses was high on the agenda.

1)      Measures to increase productivity

In the recent Bank of England Inflation report published this month it was noted that productivity was not as high as the government may wish it to be. A promise of increased productivity signals to us that investment will be made into businesses to support job creation and apprenticeship opportunities so that the national workforce can work at full capacity.

The Queen mentioned that there would be legislation proposed to help secure full employment and assured the house that an annual review of job creation figures and apprenticeship numbers will now become the done practice.

The ‘earn or learn’ approach to counter-act youth unemployment was also mentioned showing that this government is committed to lowering the unemployment numbers even further.

2)      De-regulation

One of the most important measures for small businesses was the promise of de-regulation and the ‘cutting of red tape’. This would be done to support the creation of jobs and seems to suggest that Sajid Javid’s Enterprise Bill will be going ahead, in part, during the next parliament.

3)      The EU Referendum

The speech confirmed that the EU referendum will be going ahead with early legislation to be passed before the close of 2017. The full impact this will have on SMEs will continue to be debated due to the impact of uncertainty on the markets.

However, the speech did state that the EU referendum will come alongside attempts to re-negotiate a relationship with the EU, benefitting all member states, which could have a positive effect on the UK’s trade.

4)      The Northern Powerhouse

The support for regional devolution still remains high on the governmental agenda. Promises were made that discussions with metro mayors will be taking place to discuss devolved powers and investment in high speed rail will continue. Investment into local businesses and regional development will see growth in the North especially, good news for SMEs that lack a nation-wide presence.

5)      What was missing?

Sadly there was no mention of late-payment regulation or any governmental support surrounding this issue. This will come as a blow to many SMEs who would have been hoping for an offer of legal support on this issue.

Likewise there was no mention of the Business Rates Review, which was first announced by the coalition government in February. It was proposed that the results of the review would be announced in the 2016 Budget and so SME’s may have to wait a few months before they find out if rate relief measures will result in savings.

Phil Foster, CEO of Love Energy Savings is an SME owner and has been working with SME’s for many years, helping them lower their running costs through energy tariff price comparison services.