Burnham promises businesses £800m saving in red-tape and tariff blitz ahead of Budget

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has promised that British businesses will save almost £800 million a year through a package of cuts to paperwork and an extension of tariff suspensions, in a pre-Budget push to ease pressure on firms.

The measures, unveiled on Friday ahead of Chancellor John Healey’s first Budget next Wednesday, include simpler compliance guidance for small firms worth £290 million, and the extension of import tariff suspensions on more than 250 business products — due to expire in December — for another year, saving £155 million. The government says cutting duplicative reporting for asset managers will save £105 million, while removing costs from residential property transactions saves £116 million.

Burnham said the package would give firms “breathing space to grow”. He and Healey are due to meet small business leaders at No10 North on Friday, alongside the Federation of Small Businesses, to back recommendations from the Small Business Taskforce.

Other changes include a “tell us once” rule for government data, a pause on full profit-and-loss filing requirements at Companies House for the smallest firms, standardised public-procurement requirements, and fewer data requests from official business surveys. The government says the reforms support its goal of cutting the regulatory admin burden by 25 per cent by the end of Parliament.

Healey said “British firms are fed up with form-filling and pointless paperwork”, while warning that ambitions at the Budget are limited by the fragile state of the public finances.

Sources

• Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-government-promises-save-businesses-800-million-paperwork-tariffs-2026-10-23/
• GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-slashes-red-tape-and-tariffs-to-give-businesses-breathing-space
• Gazette & Herald: https://www.gazetteherald.co.uk/news/national/26662818.healey-plans-slash-pointless-paperwork-bid-save-businesses-gbp800m/