Where is the Small Business Minister?
A small business pressure group is claiming confusion reigns over the existence of a small business Minister.
Margaret Hodge MP Following the recent Cabinet reshuffle it emerged that the small business brief was within the portfolio of Margaret Hodge at the DTI.
The Forum of Private Business (FPB) claims that another example of the disarray surrounding the role came to light during the Small Business Service (SBS) evidence-giving session to the Public Accounts Committee.
The SBS has recently been the subject of strong criticism in a report from the National Audit Office.
The FPB wants to know why, while the SBS was being told that the jury was out on their work, there was no Small Firms Minister in attendance. Despite asking the DTI in May who the minister responsible for small firms was, the FPB says that the uncertainty continues.
Campaigns Manager of the FPB Victoria Carson said: "It beggars belief that the DTI is still unsure whether there is a Small Firms Minister, and also that the post holder is too preoccupied to attend key Parliamentary Committee meetings.
"Perhaps the elusive minister felt ill at ease attending a meeting which failed to show that the SBS was of any use in its current guise."
Company Law Reform Bill
At the evidence-giving session Martin Wyn Griffith, Chief Executive of the SBS, denied the organisation was just 'guff without power', saying he believed that their power was partially derived from having a cabinet minister responsible for them.
So where was the minister in question? The FPB decided to find out, and discovered from the DTI that Mrs Hodge had been in a briefing session on the Company Law Reform Bill.
Campaigns Manager Victoria Carson hopes Mrs Hodge understands the implications of the Bill for small firms. "If one good thing comes from the lack of interest from Margaret Hodge on this evidence-giving session, let's hope it is a better deal for small firms.
"In particular the duties of directors have not been spelt out clearly.
"We're concerned that the Bill's current wording may leave directors looking over their shoulders and unable to concentrate on the day-to-day running of their businesses for fear of someone with an axe to grind taking action against them."
The FPB is still waiting for the DTI to respond after they wrote in May asking for clarification on the position of the Small Firms Minister. After receiving no reply the FPB wrote again this week in the hope that their persistence will match the ability of the minister to keep a very low profile. As the confusion at the DTI continues the FPB's message couldn't be clearer: "Is there actually a Small Firms Minister? And if not, why not?"