The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, will deliver his Autumn Statement to Parliament on Wednesday 22 November. With the state of the economy still feeling somewhat uncertain, much of his statement is likely to surround a progress update on how the Government is delivering on its key targets, namely halving inflation, growing the economy, and reducing national debt.
The Transport & Logistics sector has been calling out for measures that provide stability and that encourage and enable long-term planning and investment. In the current economic climate, businesses and employees alike need certainty and reassurance above all from this Autumn Statement. Mark Perrin, Business Advisory Partner and Transport & Logistics Sector Specialist at Menzies, has outlined his top wishlist items that would benefit the sector if announced later this month.
- We would support a longer-term investment plan for the freight industry: a plan which spans several terms of government office, enabling sufficient time to implement a futuristic and sustainable infrastructure. Short-term planning is ineffective for a key sector for UK businesses and economy. We also recommend a “multimodal” approach to the logistics industry looking at how road, sea, rail and air can play their part.
- The ongoing impact of Brexit is resulting in continued disruption and delays at cross border checks. Increasing the number of trade agreements and actively negotiating better cross border processes will help logistics businesses in the UK.
- Skills and resource shortages continue to impact the T&L industry and more investment, potentially tax incentives, are needed to encourage new recruits into the industry.
- The shortfall of drivers in the haulage industry continues to be a significant issue and new investment and initiatives are desperately needed. Investment is also needed in providing safe and secure parking spaces for truckers in the UK as there is a significant shortage. We recommend an expansion of the apprenticeship levy to help fill the skills gap and fund approved vocational courses.
- SMEs require additional tax incentives to help them to compete with larger businesses on sustainability. Enhanced tax incentives for SMEs investing in greener fleets would be welcome. We would also recommend the Government looks at the potential for emissions rebates to encourage the take up of greener fleets and fuels, including biodiesel “HVO”.
- Additional investment in the infrastructure for electric vehicles is required to encourage further investment by businesses in greener vehicles.
- We would encourage further tax incentives for SMEs investing in AI to enhance their business and compete with larger and global businesses.
