Clearview National April 2015 - Issue 161 | Page 90

BUSINESSNEWS

First time buyers - not
the only ones who
deserve a chance
»»Chris Handy, Chief
Executive at the Accord Group,
has responded to David
Cameron’s promise to make
200,000 homes available to
first-time buyers in England by
2020.

‘There is a housing
crisis due to a
huge and growing
shortage’
He said: “I support the need
to get Britain building again, but
we are already building less than
half of the number of new homes
we need in the UK. Therefore,
shouldn’t the focus be inclusive of

everyone rather than just building
200,000 homes for the young
who ‘work hard’?
“Lots of people of all ages work
hard and have done so for many
years, yet still cannot afford to
buy their own home. Many too
have to rely on benefits yet these
are being cut, so owning their
home will be just a dream.
“There is a housing crisis due
to a huge and growing shortage.
The National Housing Federation
Homes for Britain campaign
backs the need for more homes.
“There are always going to be
people who can’t afford to buy, so
we need greater investment in a
range of tenures, creating mixed
communities and where housing
is affordable for all.”

New powers for
business groups to
tackle late payment

‘Small
businesses are
the economic
backbone of
the UK, but
some large
companies are
squeezing the
life out of them’

New proposals to give business
groups further powers to challenge
unfair payment terms and practices
on behalf of their members were
unveiled earlier this year.
»»Representative bodies
such as the Federation of Small
Businesses (FSB) have played a
key role in raising the profile of
payment issues.
Giving these organisations
further powers to challenge
unfair payment terms, on
behalf of their members, could
give small businesses more
confidence to speak out against
the poor practices of their larger
customers.

90 » A PR 2015 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M

Paying tribute to the FSB in
highlighting the issue, Business
Minister Matthew Hancock
said:
“Small businesses are the
economic backbone of the UK,
but some large companies are
squeezing the life out of them by
imposing unreasonable payment
terms. This behaviour must stop,
once and for all.
“Greater transparency is
key and we are setting an

example in government, by
committing to paying 80% of
our invoices within five days,
with a maximum of 30-day
terms on all public sector
contracts.”
Business Secretary
(pictured), Vince Cable, said,
“Large companies using their
economic might to impose
unreasonable terms on th eir
suppliers causes real problems
for small businesses.”