Central government’s distance from the practical realities on the ground meant confusion, delays and uncertainty for small businesses and local authorities. Business, local authorities and MPs all experienced at times a lack of clarity about precisely which businesses were covered by which schemes, and experienced delays when seeking clarification from BEIS. BEIS published multiple iterations of guidance and related documents as it worked through issues it had not anticipated when the schemes...

Central government’s distance from the practical realities on the ground meant confusion, delays and uncertainty for small businesses and local authorities. Business, local authorities and MPs all experienced at times a lack of clarity about precisely which businesses were covered by which schemes, and experienced delays when seeking clarification from BEIS. BEIS published multiple iterations of guidance and related documents as it worked through issues it had not anticipated when the schemes were launched. Examples of difficulties cited to us included distinguishing ‘wet-led’ pubs from other pubs and assessing whether meals were ‘substantial Type: conclusion | Number: 3 | Response status: accepted Government response: The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. improve understanding of small businesses operating in different sectors and on strengthening mechanisms for receiving and acting upon feedback from this segment of the business community.