The headline in The Times says "Shock as figures show Britain still in recession". Those expressing the shock are the usual non-specific commentators "City and Downing Street". It doesn't come as a shock to anyone down in the fray rather than surveying it from the battlements. The Today Programme spoke to a couple of people in business and asked them if there was anything government could do to make things easier for them. One said the nation could do with an industrial strategy. The other, who ran a three-employee office furniture business, modestly pleaded that since government is now the only organisation spending money, it might be nice if his company could sell some of its goods to them. He explained why this was no longer possible: "We used to deal with the NHS, specifically the PCTs, but now there's an OGC which will only deal with companies turning over £20m and you have to have all the ISOs."
That sentence sends a shiver down my spine.
In theory the government should be spending money with small business (there is a thing called the SME concordiat). In practice this takes time and effort, and costs money so does not happen. Problem is that the public sector is desperately trying to cut costs - and that squeezes spending money with small businesses (such as mine) that depend on selling to the public sector. I just lost a potentially business saving contract with the local RDA because they decided to do the project in house (after making me bid for it, and win it against 2 other businesses). Badly done Emma.
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