Businesses in #rural areas perceive new opportunities for growth but long-standing challenges are hampering take-up. Our report - supported by Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) & Rural England - calls for continued improvements in #infrastructure. ▶️bit.ly/3SmhDLO Enterprise Research Centre (ERC) Jon, Shepherds Walks

🗞️ FSB calls for an increase to the VAT threshold; growth measures needed as inflation rises, scaling-up small businesses, and more. Get up to speed with the week's most important small business news with our Weekly Brief Newsletter 👇 🔗 go.fsb.org.uk/4b6ti8P

With Shadow Sect of State Jonathan Reynolds for Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) for a Q&A on Labour's plan for small business, at the new Visku flexible warehousing site in Wellingborough. Keen to hear some of the detail behind "Scrap business rates" - and possible replacements...

Some 64 per cent of UK consumers preferred to shop local last year as a growing number of Brits brainstorm effective ways to spend their cash. cityam.com/budget-conscio…

🗣️ A lot of businesses don't go bust because they're making a loss, they go bust because they've got no cash. ⏰ We spoke to Small Business Minister Kevin Hollinrake MP about the importance of curbing #LatePayments to small businesses.

Northern lights as seen from Leicestershire tonight. If you could see through those clouds it would be an awesome sight. Probably.

As it's (Good) Friday, I'm asking all my followers to please retweet this tweet if you see it, to help my bird account be seen!🙏 To make it worth sharing, here's a Blackbird singing to the moon! 😍🐦 Thank you very much! 😊 #FridayRetweetPlease ♥️

New FPL league suggestion: lowest score while actually trying. Like Pointless, but with with real players fudging it up. That I could win. Who's in?

Labour’s plan for our high streets will breathe new life into your area: ✅13,000 more neighbourhood police and PCSOs ✅Guaranteed face-to-face banking in every community ✅Replace business rates ✅Stamp out late payments ✅Revamp empty shops, pubs, and community spaces

As it's Friday, I'm asking all my followers to please retweet this post if you see it, to help my bird account be seen!🙏 To make it worth sharing, here's 'The Watcher'... a Barn Owl on the Somerset Levels. 😍🦉 Thank you very much! 😊🐦

Finally, in Leicestershire...

For fifty years FSB has been the leading voice of the self-employed and small business owners across the UK. Doing that includes the help and expertise of our volunteer policy champions, led by policy chair Tina McKenzie MBE Thank you to all of our volunteers past and present.

✅ Tackling late payments. ✅ Reforming business rates. ✅ Securing fair access to finance. FSB's Martin McTague OBE tells BBC Radio 4 Today that we want to see a commitment to a bold Small Business Act from all parties in the upcoming #GeneralElection 🎙️

Our General Election Small Business Manifesto sets out the blue print of what small businesses and the self-employed across the UK want to see from the next Government. 👇

The Liberal Democrats commitment to replace #businessrates with this land tax is all but undeliverable. The UK has no register of land ownership, values could not be established fairly given the absence of reliable evidence and tax collection from overseas owners would be challenging.

URGENT! Pls share. The last chance to register to vote in the General Election is 11.59pm tomorrow Tue 18 June. Potentially 8m aren't registered at their current address. Here's 4 key facts... 1) You can do it online here registertovote.service.gov.uk/country-of-res… 2) It's good for your finances.

Good to see the Muppet Uncle Deadly still getting roles at his age in the latest Doctor Who

Congratulations to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. We're looking forward to working with the new Government to ensure that the small business voice is heard, and that the right actions can be taken to support existing entrepreneurs, and encourage new ones.

Our very warm congratulations to you, Jonathan Reynolds, and we look forward to building a successful partnership between Government and small business.

Aurora over the Tower House in Lubenham, Leicestershire