THE Chancellor’s 2016 Budget announcements on business taxes, cider duty and flood defence improvements have been welcomed by the chief executive of Somerset Chamber of Commerce, although he described the lack of reference to South-West infrastructure improvements as ‘frustrating’. 

Dale Edwards said: “With potential stormy waters ahead in the global marketplace, the Budget was something of a ‘steady as she goes’ approach, particularly with the Office for Budget Responsibility predicting downward growth rates of 2% this year, rising to 2.1% in 2017. Smaller businesses in the South-West will welcome measures that will avoid higher taxes, or in a number of areas will reduce them – principally changes to business rate relief, commercial stamp duty and corporation tax, all of which the British Chambers of Commerce and Chamber network have been campaigning for.

“However, announcements in the Budget relating to new or improved infrastructure were concentrated in the North and South East of England, which is frustrating for the South-West.

“On a brighter note, Somerset cider makers and distributors will be pleased that duty has been frozen, and it is hoped that some of the additional £700 million revealed through an insurance premium taxation increase of 0.5% to fund improvements to flood defences will be spent in Somerset.”