Andy Bird, managing director, Folio
I would like to see the government lobbied to understand the issues facing SMEs, not just in print, but in industry as a whole. I think it is a little late to be lobbying over phoenix companies, we have all been long affected by that. I don’t think that there is anything that could be done about that. But there are thousands of things that could be done to help the plight of small businesses in print. For instance, they shouldn’t add VAT on books. But what is most important is to understand what we are facing. It is great that the BPIF is lobbying the government, but I fear it will fall on deaf ears.
Sidney Bobb, chairman, BAPC
The print industry isn’t high on the Whitehall agenda and with the problems facing the economy and the change of government, it’s going to be very tough to get noticed. We should find something that’s attractive to other industries of a similar ilk, rather than something specific to print. For the SMEs and micro-businesses that make up the bulk of the sector, one of the biggest problems is getting paid and something I’ve argued for is for every company to be legally required to have a payment policy. If that were the case, it would make it a lot easier for SMEs, both in the print industry and in other sectors, to get paid on time, which would be a welcome change.
Paul Anderson, managing director, Fairprint
For me, I think the changing of the pre-pack rules should be the number one priority. So many businesses keep reappearing time and time again and, as a result, this is causing prices to be pushed down. I was speaking with the director of a European company at Ipex last month and they said that the pre-pack rules in the UK end up supporting companies in those situations, rather than discouraging them. That, in my view, needs to be changed, or more businesses will continue to abuse the system.
Mark Snee, managing director, Technoprint
Once again, the BPIF opposes VAT on publications, but omits to explain the ‘tax on knowledge’ principle, demands more money for training and more money from RDAs. Has the penny not dropped that government debt has derailed the economy? Leaving aside the possibility that several ‘priorities’ are at least as much for the BPIF’s benefit as for the industry’s, one wonders who will raise the bigger issues affecting print, such as trade imbalances, our dysfunctional skills system, and the excessive taxation of businesses. Thankfully, two ‘high priority actions’ from the BPIF’s ‘Print 21’ report – join the euro and a compulsory training levy – were not implemented or we’d be sunk now.
