ECA welcomes three major business and energy Bills announced in the King’s Speech, where action on late payment and speeding up clean energy delivery was stated to be critical to protecting small firms, jobs and supply chains across the UK.

ECA has helped Government design reforms now set out in a Small Business Protections (Late Payment) Bill, after decades of warning that systemic late payment drives closure of otherwise viable businesses forcing them to scale back, delay training, investment and growth.

ECA has led in shaping key measures in the Bill including:

• Giving the Small Business Commissioner enforcement powers, including the ability to fine large firms that fail to pay, report or comply on time.
• Closing loopholes so large customers cannot contract out of a mandatory 60-day cap on payment terms.
• Stopping parties from contracting out of the statutory 8% interest charge on late payment.
• Requiring boards or audit committees of persistently late-paying large companies to publish explanations for poor performance and set out corrective action.
• Introducing a time limit for raising invoice disputes before payment is due.
• Taking targeted action in construction to ban the practice of deducting and withholding retention payments under contracts.

Rob Driscoll, Director of Legal & Policy at ECA, said:

Late payment is not a minor inconvenience – it is a cashflow shock that hits SMEs first, putting jobs, apprenticeships and local supply chains at risk. ECA has worked for decades with Ministers and officials to make sure the voice of ECA Members is heard in shaping the reforms now coming forward.

If Parliament delivers these changes, it will be one of the most significant improvements to payment protections in a generation unlocking investment and growth.

ECA recently launched its Safe Energy Transition Charter where it stated: 

‘The UK’s clean energy ambitions must be matched by a relentless focus on safety, as electrification accelerates. Delivery of a secure and safe electrical network relies on the professional skills and competence of installers’.

The King’s Speech announced two measures to accelerate the demand and use of electrification, equating to more opportunities for ECA Members:

• Energy Independence Bill: aims to speed up deployment of low carbon technologies, increase investment in the energy infrastructure and accelerate grid efficiency upgrades. 
• Nuclear Regulation Bill: programme to reduce long term project costs in order to provide more affordable, low carbon electricity and therefore protect households from volatile gas prices.

Jane Dawson, Head of External Affairs at ECA, said:

If we align investment in workforce safety and competence, with clean electricity and grid capacity, the UK can reduce exposure to fossil fuel volatility building a modern, resilient and secure electrical energy system.