Business Minister Matthew Hancock has announced plans to tackle late paymentsNew proposals have been unveiled by the Department of Business Innovation and Skills which will make large and listed companies publish detailed information about their payment practices and performance.
The outlined proposals will make it easier for small businesses to compare the role models with the less reputable by providing robust information, including the average payment time, the proportion of invoices paid beyond terms and the proportion of invoices paid within 30 days, over 30 days, over 60 days, and over 120 days.
The reporting requirement has been designed from a previous consultation from the government, where they suggest that the majority of those questioned supported increased transparency over payments.
The reporting will be on quarterly basis and will be a mandatory requirement for all large and quoted companies.
Business Minister Matthew Hancock said: ”Tackling late payment is at the heart of our drive to help small businesses. We know that small businesses are often reluctant to risk losing business by using the redress measures we’ve put in place, so we want to tackle the underlying culture by increasing transparency on payment practices and performance.”
New consultations will take place and ask for views on the proposals that will see companies:
- reporting on a quarterly basis
- reporting on standardised metrics on payment performance
- disclosing additional narrative information on payment practices
- publishing the information on their website
- facing fines for breach of the requirement
To view the consultation and to respond visit:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/business-payment-practices-and-policies-duty-to-report
