Enterprise support key to employment rise - chamber
West Midlands business leaders have reacted to a small decline in unemployment figures by telling government that support for enterprise is vital to the economic success of the region.
According to statistics from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), unemployment levels in the West Midlands fell by 11.8 per cent between March and June to 224,000.
Christine Braddock, president of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce Group, said: "Replacing business rates, lowering levels of planning and cutting legislation is the only way to encourage businesses to invest and take on more staff."
Louise Bennett, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, agreed, describing the figures as "disappointing if not unexpected".
She said: "I saw Lord Digby Jones's comments about scrapping employer National Insurance contributions and while some may think that’s going too far, we need radical thinking to help companies grow and take on new staff.
"In any climate, but particularly the current one, government needs to make it as easy as possible for businesses – especially SMEs – to take on new people. This will be one of the topics at our annual conference in September because creating new jobs will be key to getting the economy growing."
