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Force Large Companies To Pay SME Suppliers within 30 days

Force Large Companies To Pay SME Suppliers within 30 days

49 signatures 1 to reach 50
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Started by Anonymous 14 years, 5 months ago
Over 90% of business are Small & Medium Sized Enterprises (SME's), accounting for a massive proportion of GDP (around half in the UK). It therefore follows that recovery and growth in the economy and in employment will rely on the SME sector. SME's are struggling to grow through lack of working capital and the banks are failing to get adequate lending out to the sector in any meaningful way due to perceived risk. At the same time, larger business are using their relative power to maximise their own cashflow by extending payment terms to their suppliers, which are often SME's. The result is a starving of cash in the SME sector. Legislation should be introduced requiring "large" businesses to pay their SME suppliers no later than 30 days from the date of invoice or supply. This would very quickly result in an enormous flow of cash into the SME sector to fund growth. This would also leave the banks positioned to lend to the larger corporations which generally have a much lower risk profile.

Updates

February 24, 2012

I set this up because I watched my own small business nearly buckle under the weight of these endless payment cycles. Hearing your stories confirms that this is a widespread crisis rather than just a streak of bad luck for a few of us. I am spending my time now digging into the legislative pathways to make sure someone in power finally has to look at the damage these practices cause to our livelihoods.

February 24, 2012

Watching this momentum build is overwhelming because I know exactly how many small businesses are currently hanging by a thread while waiting for late payments. Seeing so many people recognize that these giants have no right to hold our hard-earned cash hostage gives me real hope for a change in how we do business.

3 Comments

M
Mark Nair
14 years ago Featured

Working 60 hours a week and still cant make payroll because the big boys sit on their hands. this needs to be law.

D
Dave Pierce
14 years ago Featured

its about time someone stood up for the little guys. chasing invoices for 90 days is killing my firm.

S
Sarah Cooper
14 years ago Featured

BIG COMPANIES NEED TO STOP USING SMALL BUSINESSES LIKE A FREE BANK ACCOUNT. PAY ON TIME OR DONT ORDER THE STUFF.

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