11 Apr 2018The Small Business Taskforce has outlined a series of recommendations with the stated aim of ensuring that the UK remains ‘one of the best places in the world to start and grow a business’. In a new ten-point manifesto, the Taskforce has urged the government to simplify the bidding process for small businesses so that they can better access government contracts; consider extending free childcare hours for self-employed parents; and redefine self-employment, to lead to ‘fair taxation’ and a ‘better understanding’ of what it means to be self-employed. The Small Business Taskforce stated that the recommendations have the potential to ‘deliver prosperity and fairness for all’. Commenting on the proposals, Simon McVicker, Director of Policy at the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE), said: ‘This manifesto provides a roadmap for the government to fully embrace the benefits the self-employed bring to the economy, particularly in ensuring the UK retains its most important competitive advantage – its flexibility – at this uncertain time.’ The manifesto will be delivered to government ministers ‘in the coming weeks’.