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<p>Across the UK, the Government-backed British Business Bank (the Bank) seeks to
increase the supply of finance for smaller businesses and to reduce regional disparities
in access to finance. The Bank’s programmes are currently supporting over £6.6 billion
of finance to over 89,000 SMEs (as at June 2019). And through the Bank's Enterprise
Finance Guarantee (EFG) there is currently approximately £300mn of headroom available
to lenders this financial year. There is also approximately £1bn of guarantee headroom
currently available to lenders under the Bank's ENABLE Guarantee programme.</p><p>Government
has also supported and invested in the creation of a network of 38 Growth Hubs in
England – one in each Local Enterprise Partnership area) – to provide a free, impartial,
single point of local contact to all businesses, no matter their size or sector, to
access advice and support across the public and private sector: in 2018-2019 Growth
Hubs in England supported over 121,500 businesses. At the end of FY18/19, Government
had invested £56.4 million in Growth Hubs that helped over 9,500 individuals start
a business achieving an average customer satisfaction rate of 81.45%.</p><p>Businesses
in England can also access business support through GOV.UK, and the National Business
Support Helpline.</p><p>Since Budget 2016, the Government has announced reductions
to business rates worth more than £13 billion until 2021.</p><p>My rt. hon. Friend
the Prime Minister has announced a £3.6 billion Towns Fund, including £1 billion for
an accelerated Future High Streets Fund. Last year the Government also made a number
of announcements to support High Street businesses:</p><ul><li>cutting the business
rates bills of retailers by one third until April 2021 for properties with a rateable
value below £51,000;</li><li>potential for up to 90% of retail properties in England
to be eligible for the retail discount, worth almost £900m to businesses over two
years; and</li><li>potential for retail discount to help a retailer save up to £8,000
off their 2019-20 bill.</li></ul><p> </p><p>At Autumn Budget 2018, HM Treasury announced
that the VAT threshold will be maintained at the current level of £85,000 until April
2022. The VAT threshold is the highest in the EU and the OECD. It keeps an estimated
over 3.55 million small businesses out of VAT.</p>
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