Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he has taken to speed up payments by public bodies and private concerns to small businesses; and what recent assessment he has made of average payment times.

We announced further reforms to public procurement on 30 May to speed up payments by public bodies to small businesses. These include improvements to e-invoicing, procurement processes and greater powers for Ministers to investigate complaints raised by the Cabinet Office's ‘mystery shopper scheme'.

We have also announced new legislation that will require larger businesses to report on their payment performance and practices. Increasing transparency and driving openness is at the heart of building a more responsible payment culture that UK businesses need to thrive.

Recent research suggests that UK businesses experience an average 17 day delay to payment of invoices. This is a reduction in the past two years but a figure that is still too high and is holding back investment and growth.