Labour calls for Small Business Saturday in UK
BRITAIN should follow the lead of the US and designate a day to encourage shopping in local independent retailers, shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna said yesterday.
The Labour MP wants 7 December 2013 to be the inaugural ‘Small Business Saturday’ in the hope it will focus consumer attention on local high streets. “We must do more to celebrate the contribution local small independent businesses make to our economy and encourage people to buy from them,” he said.
Umunna has asked American Express, who set up and run the US programme, to extend the initiative across the Atlantic.
However the government insisted they were already working hard to help small shop owners. Local growth minister Mark Prisk said: “We’re determined to offer practical support to our High Streets, which is why we’ve doubled the amount of small business rate relief to new and smaller shops.”