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中小企业(sme)作为英国经济的基石,长期以来饱受逾期付款、融资难及行政负担沉重等问题的困扰。近期,英国政府发布了《支持您的业务》行动蓝图,提出了一系列涵盖立法、金融支持及技术赋能的针对性措施。
其中,最受关注的莫过于通过立法手段重拳打击“逾期付款”顽疾,并承诺削减25%的行政成本。这些举措不仅旨在改善小企业的生存环境,也为财务专业人士提供了从繁琐税收表格中解脱、向高价值业务分析转型的契机。本文将深入剖析这一宏大蓝图如何从五个维度重塑中小企业的增长条件,并探讨其在实际落地中可能面临的挑战。
smallbusinesses... big plan
小企业,大蓝图
canthe uk finally get to grips with late payments for smaller businesses? stephenlynch looks at a new plan being put in place.
英国最终能否解决困扰小企业的逾期付款问题?斯蒂芬·林奇(stephenlynch)带您解析正在实施的新计划。
aplan for supporting the uk’s small and medium-sized enterprises (smes) waspublished by the uk government in july.
2025年7月,英国政府发布了一项旨在支持英国中小企业(简称:sme)的计划。
the‘backing your business’ document focuses on five themes:
这份名为《支持您的业务》文件重点围绕五个主题展开:
1. legislating to tackle late payment, modernising tax andcustoms, and cutting regulatory burdens.
一、通过立法解决逾期付款问题,推进税务与海关现代化,并减轻监管负担。
2. improving access to finance through the british businessbank (bbb).
二、通过英国商业银行(简称:bbb)改善融资渠道。
3. opening up more opportunities for smes through governmentcontracts and international trade.
三、通过政府采购合同和国际贸易为中小企业开辟更多机遇。
4. supporting the ‘everyday economy’ with a focus on highstreets, local enterprise and tackling crimes like shoplifting that hurt smallbusinesses.
四、支持“日常经济”,重点关注商业街、地方企业,并打击入室盗窃等损害小企业利益的犯罪行为。
5. ‘future-proofing’ business skills in leadership andmanagement, digital technology and ai.
五、提升领导力与管理、数字技术及人工智能等领域的业务技能,以“面向未来”。
latepayment
逾期付款
theplan promises legislation to end late payments, which it states cost the ukeconomy almost £11bn per year and close down 38 uk businesses every day.
该计划承诺通过立法终结逾期付款行为。据计划所述,逾期付款每年给英国经济造成近110亿英镑的损失,且导致每天有38家英国企业倒闭。
itsets out an approach to consult on some of the following measures:
计划提出了一套方案,拟就以下部分措施进行磋商:
•requiring large companies to include their payment performance within theirannual reports.
• 要求大型公司在年报中披露其付款表现。
•giving the small business commissioner powers to fine the worst offenders andinvestigate poor b2b payment behaviour.
• 赋予小企业专员权力,对情节严重的违规者处以罚款,并调查不良的b2b付款行为。
•setting maximum payment terms of 60 days, reducing to 45 days after five years.
• 设置最长60天的付款期限,并在五年后缩短至45天。
thefederation of small businesses (fsb) has long campaigned in this area, andpolicy chair tina mckenzie describes these proposals as “a huge step forward”.she adds that the existing system “has consistently failed to spurorganisations to pay on time”.
英国小企业联合会(简称:fsb)长期以来一直致力于该领域的推动工作,其政策主席蒂娜·麦肯齐(tina mckenzie)称这些提案是“巨大的进步”。她补充道,现有体系“始终未能有效促使企业机构按时付款”。
emilycoltman, chief accountant at freeagent, welcomes the focus on this issue butwants to see the final plans in the legislation.
freeagent首席会计师艾米莉·柯尔特曼(emilycoltman)对关注这一问题表示欢迎,但她更希望看到最终落实到立法中的具体计划。
“ourown research has shown that nearly one in five small business owners (18%) havefelt their business was at risk because of late or nonpayment, and more thanone in ten (13%) have taken legal action to recover what they’re owed.
“我们的研究表明,近五分之一(18%)的小企业主曾因逾期付款或未付款而感到企业经营陷入危机;超过十分之一(13%)的企业主曾采取法律行动来追讨欠款。”
“mandatingthe fair payment code could have been a game-changer that would hold chroniclate payers accountable and force them to adhere to decent payment standards inorder to protect vulnerable businesses. by keeping it voluntary, the code willremain a toothless wolf.”
“如果强制执行《公平付款准则》,本可以彻底改变局面,让长期拖欠者承担责任,并迫使他们遵守合理的付款标准,从而保护弱势企业。若仅维持自愿原则,该准则仍将是一只‘纸老虎’。”
accessto finance
融资渠道
increasingbritish business bank (bbb) lending to £25.6bn had already been announcedbefore the sme plan, although there are further policies on expanding access tofinance in some of these areas:
在中小企业计划发布之前,政府已宣布将英国商业银行的贷款额度增至256亿英镑,此外还有一些旨在扩大融资渠道的进一步政策:
•£1bn for the start up loans scheme for 69,000 more loans, with mentoring.
• 为“创业贷款计划”拨款10亿英镑,额外提供6.9万笔贷款并配备创业辅导。
•expanding the enable guarantees programme to £5bn, which is designed to encouragelending to smaller businesses.
• 将“enable担保计划”扩大至50亿英镑,旨在鼓励金融机构向小企业发放贷款。
•an extra £340m for bbb’s regional angels programme, which aims to help reduceregional imbalances in access to early-stage equity finance for smes across theuk.
• 为英国商业银行的“地区天使投资计划”追加3.4亿英镑,旨在缩小英国各地区中小企业在获取早期股权融资方面的差距。
inaddition, the government will work with funding providers to address anyinappropriate and disproportionate use of personal guarantees and develop amandatory code of conduct for accredited lenders using the growth guaranteescheme (which is also extended to 2030 in the plan).
此外,政府将与资金提供方合作,解决个人担保使用不当或比例失调的问题,并为使用“增长担保计划”(该计划已延长至2030年)的认可贷款机构制定强制性行为准则。
publicprocurement and exporting
政府采购与出口
theimplementation of the reforms in the procurement act 2023 is intended to helpmore smes win government contracts.
《2023年采购法》改革的实施旨在帮助更多中小企业赢得政府采购合同。
theplan also sets out details for opening opportunities at home and overseas,including through:
该计划还阐述了开拓国内外机遇的细节,包括:
•an sme education programme for small firms bidding for public sector contracts.
• 为竞标公共部门合同的小型企业提供中小企业培训计划。
•increased uk export finance capability by £20bn.
• 将英国出口融资能力提高200亿英镑。
•a new digital business growth service directing businesses to local andrelevant support.
• 推出全新的数字化“业务增长服务”,引导企业获取当地及相关的支持。
citinghis 20 years’ experience as a senior financial professional working in and withsmes, sakura business solutions’ damian connolly says there are actually “veryfew (or very specialist) sme businesses that engage with tender processes”.
sakurabusiness solutions的达米安·康诺利(damian connolly)引用其在中小企业领域20年的资深财务执业经验表示,实际上“极少有(或仅有极少数专业性极强的)中小企业参与招标流程”。
“theoverriding purpose of procurement teams is to minimise risks, which alwaysmeans that navigating the tender and pitch process cannot be simplified enoughfor many smes to engage more,” adds connolly.
康诺利补充道:“采购团队的首要目标是降低风险,这意味着对于许多中小企业来说,招投标流程的复杂程度始终难以降到足以让他们广泛参与的水平。”
conditionsfor growth
增长环境
smallbusiness commissioner emma jones cbe believes the plan “will create theconditions for small businesses to invest and go for growth, with governmentworking to open up market opportunities in the uk public sector and abroad,while reducing the admin burden on business”.
小企业专员艾玛·琼斯(emma jones cbe)认为,随着政府努力开辟英国公共部门及海外市场机遇并减轻企业行政负担,该计划“将为小企业投资和追求增长创造有利条件”。
tinamckenzie believes the plan “has the potential to improve the landscape” andthat “the health of the small business ecosystem is crucial” to thegovernment’s stated priority of economic growth (restated by keir starmer inhis speech at the labour party conference).
蒂娜·麦肯齐认为该计划“具有改善行业格局的潜力”,且“小企业生态系统的健康发展”对于政府优先关注的经济增长至关重要(基尔·斯塔默在工党大会演讲中再次重申了这一点)。
ofparticular benefit to finance professionals is a pledge to cut theadministrative costs of regulation for businesses by 25% to save them time andmoney – so they can turn more attention to analysing operations and addingvalue to their businesses.
对财务专业人士而言,特别受益的一点是政府承诺将企业的监管行政成本降低25%,以节省其时间和金钱,从而使他们能够将更多精力转向业务分析并为企业创造价值。
alsoof interest is whether ‘modernising the tax and customs system’ and aitechnology actually means simplified tax calculations and fewer forms to fillin for accountants.
同样令人关注的是,“税务与海关系统现代化”以及人工智能技术的应用,是否真正意味着税费计算的简化,以及会计师需要填写的申报表格会随之减少。
freeagent’semily coltman also welcomes the loan finance options for smes and investment inskills, saying this “could help train the next generation of accountants andfinance professionals”.
freeagent的艾米莉·柯尔特曼(emily coltman)也对中小企业的贷款融资选择和技能投资表示欢迎,并表示这“有助于培养下一代会计师和财务专业人士”。
stephenlynch is a freelance journalist
斯蒂芬·林奇(stephen lynch)是一位自由撰稿人。
文章来源:财务会计师公会会刊《财务会计师》(financialaccountant)2025年11月-12月刊,第14-15页




