COVID-19 update – 26 November – Apprenticeship funding and Business rates multiplier frozen

More apprenticeship funding for SMEs

From August 2021, employers that pay the Apprenticeship Levy will be able to transfer unspent levy funds in bulk to SMEs via a pledge function. Unspent levy funds still expire after 24 months. A new online service will be introduced in the same month to match levy payers with SMEs that share their business priorities.

Business rates multiplier frozen

The business rates multiplier will be frozen for the 2021-22 financial year. The government estimates that this will save businesses in England £575m over five years in its Spending Review and pledges to ‘fully compensate’ local authorities for the change.