British Chambers of Commerce warns of 70% surge in business costs

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has warned that a decade of domestic policy decisions has resulted in a 70 percent surge in the business cost stack, significantly hindering investment and growth in the UK.

BCC Director General Shevaun Haviland stated that successive governments have layered costs such as minimum wage increases, employer National Insurance, business rates, apprenticeship levies, and various tax changes onto employers. For a typical small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) with 50 employees and a £5 million turnover, these policy-driven expenses have risen by approximately £224,572 in the last two years alone.

This rising overhead is directly impacting capital expenditure. A BCC quarterly economic survey of 4,700 businesses found that only 17 percent of firms have increased investment in the last three months, the lowest level since the pandemic lockdowns. To highlight these pressures ahead of the October budget, the BCC has launched a Cost Stack Calculator to help businesses quantify the impact of statutory costs on their balance sheets.