Grantrow Advisory Board Responds to Recession Announcements

Grantrow Advisory Board discussed improving the UK economy amidst the recession, focusing on stimulating housing markets, reducing corporation tax, and increasing business sales.

The Office for National Statistics announced on Thursday that the UK is in recession with a 0.3% drop in gross domestic product for the last quarter of 2023 following a drop of 0.1% in the third quarter. The press is full of articles regarding the recession. The Guardian editorial on 15th February starts with “The Conservatives have presided over a shrunken British economy, and Rishi Sunak does not have a clue how to make it grow again.”

We asked members of the Grantrow Advisory Board what they would do to improve the UK economy.

Jonathan Dudley, Managing Partner of Crowe UK, responded by saying “Rather than paying banks out for failed businesses lacking vital investment due to their debt; it could be used as a credit grant for investment; helping banks re-lend the credit given to help unlock investment. Sending money round in a circle but deriding the government balance sheet.”

“There’s an argument at least to stimulate the housing market,” said Mike Gahir, Managing Director of Lakes Showering Spaces. “Reintroducing a help-to-buy scheme would get first-time buyers on the move. And a review of the housing stock. I’m not sure if there are enough starter homes being built.” He went on to say, “Low economic growth, which in large parts is a deliberate strategy to deal with inflationary pressures is to be expected but it has suppressed consumer confidence and expenditure.”

“We must reduce corporation tax to encourage reinvestment and stimulate new investment. Why can’t we take the opportunity to become ‘Singapore on Thames,’” added Petro Nicolaides, special advisor to the West Midlands Mayor.

Lisa Nicholson, Commercial Director of GMS commented, “Some businesses are struggling to meet demand because they can’t recruit, especially for low-skilled roles. At times, it seems like potential new recruits are trapped when they try to come off benefits and into work. If it was more attractive to be in employment and the benefits system was only used in genuine cases, businesses would find it easier to recruit and they’d be more likely to meet demand and therefore grow. I’d also like to see a review of the way business rates are calculated. The current calculation isn’t considered fair, especially on small businesses but because it’s not a priority for the government, no focus is being given in this area.”

When we asked the same question Pete Gill, Commercial Director of Grantrow Ltd. He responded “Increase sales. If every business was able to increase sales by 10%, we would add half a trillion pounds to GDP. This may sound preposterous within a post-Covid-19, post-Brexit, and recession economy, but there are steps a business can take to transform its productivity. Furthermore, a recession is a great opportunity to acquire new businesses or take on the custom of failing businesses or to integrate your supply chain to safeguard your future.”

The Grantrow Advisory Board was created in 2024 to develop thought leadership regarding small business growth. There are 5.5m small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs - less than 250 employees) in the UK. Total employment was 16.7 million (61% of the total), whilst turnover was estimated at £2.4 trillion (53%). 4.1m SMEs have no employees. There are 200,000 SMEs with between 10 and 249 employees.