Small business 'tooth fairies' lose the plot yet again
A press release last week from our hapless Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) heralded the fact that the public sector tooth fairies, who purport to act on 'behalf' of UK businesses, are going to reduce the number of local, regional and national business support schemes from the current level of 3,000 down to 100 by the year 2010.
Two basic questions need to be asked:
Why? And how?
First of all, the DTI doesn't understand the very data - its own data - that it is working from. There are almost 3,000 schemes listed in its own Business Support Directory located on the Businesslink.gov website, but most of these have nothing to do with the Government or the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs). In other words, they are schemes run by the many notable and highly effective private, voluntary and independent support organisations that successfully operate at a local level around the UK.
These locally operating schemes are for the benefit of the groups of people that miss out or are excluded from the DTI's business support 'products' (why on earth don't they call them 'schemes?').
The groups that miss out, and under the DTI's announcement will miss out even more, include:
- women
- disabled people
- legal immigrants
- ethnic minorities
- ex-offenders
- homeless people
- home business owners
- micro business start ups
- small retail businesses
- sole traders such as tradespeople, gardeners and window cleaners
...and a host of other disadvantaged groups.
And if these schemes are not Government-funded or administered, exactly how are they going to get rid of these highly necessary local initiatives? More regulations? Are we going to see The Abolition of Vital Independent Business Support Activities Regulations 2010?
Well, maybe not, as according to an article in the Telegraph containing 'leaked' information from the DTI, it appears that the tooth fairies are are already trying to get out of the hole they've dug for themselves.
