UK plans to slash business paperwork, saving £450m annually

The amount of paperwork businesses are required to regularly carry out could be slashed, the business secretary has announced.

Jonathan Reynolds said he plans to simplify corporate reporting rules and exempt some small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from the need to carry out certain form-filling exercises altogether.

The Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade said the corporate reporting changes could save businesses across the UK £450m.

It added that it was “nonsensical” for small businesses, including cafes, hotels and furniture makers, to have to conduct the detailed paperwork when they should be focused on their day-to-day trade.

The department claimed the average annual report and accounts of some businesses now run to 98,000 words, and compared it to the length of JRR Tolkien’s fantasy novel The Hobbit, which is more than 95,300 words.

The average count is said to be even higher for FTSE 100 companies, at 152,000 words.

“No one goes into business to fill out forms,” said Reynolds.

“For years, hardworking firms in this country have been weighed down by pen-pushing paperwork and frustrating costs, ticking boxes that do nothing to help them grow their business.

“We’re stripping back outdated bureaucracy and building a commonsense system fit for a 21st-century economy.

“This will cut the cost of doing business, giving breathing room to bosses across the country and free them up to focus on what they do best, creating jobs and growth.”

A consultation into the plans begins on 7 September.