"This Budget delivered some welcome surprises for SME businesses in the UK, with the government going further than expected with business rate cuts and a pledge on Statutory Sick Pay to help tackle the potential threat of coronavirus. "A commitment from the government to pay Statutory Sick Pay for up to 14 days for any workers impacted by coronavirus will also help the cash flow of many UK SMEs. We're pleased to see the government go further than expected with this measure. “An announcement from the Bank of England that it will also offer new incentives for banks to lend more to SMEs was also made today, however, the specific details of this are still unclear. Banks have traditionally made it tricky for many SME businesses to access funding and it remains to be seen if these schemes will actually deliver what is hoped.” “It’s disappointing that the government wasn’t able to provide any certainty or security around the future of the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA). An extension to the limit could have proved extremely useful to many manufacturers and could provide business owners with the opportunity to invest in much needed technology and innovation, supporting them in their future growth plans.” John Rozenbroek, CFO and COO at Capify