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Back in July, the SBF blog reported that the government was to begin ‘naming and shaming’ companies who fail to pay SMEs promptly.
However, an alliance of organisations has come together to request more is done by the government to help SMEs struggling due to late payments, as the issue continues to cause headaches for many businesses.
Lloyds Banking Group, the National Farmers Union, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and the Forum of Private Business (FPB) have written to business minister Mark Prisk calling for a structured plan of action aimed at encouraging prompt payments.
Measures the organisations propose include government intervention to create rules to prevent businesses from imposing retrospective changes to payments terms and conditions, as well as ensuring that the voluntary scheme, Prompt Payment Code, is made opt-out rather than opt-in.
The FPB separately called for companies on the FTSE to be forced to provide more detailed information on their payment procedures to ensure more transparency.
Phil Orford, Chief Executive of the FPB, was adamant something needed to be done, “It is time to tackle the problem once and for all."
Funding solutions for cashflow problems
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