Commercial Payments Bill [HL]

Lord Risby Excerpts

2nd reading
Tuesday 9th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Risby (Con)]

My Lords, during my entire life as a parliamentarian, the health and enduring viability of the small business sector has been at times a matter of concern, with Governments of all stripes to some extent failing or falling short of being able to deal effectively with the one key necessity for the success of these businesses: cash flow. I declare an interest in that I was for many years the deputy chairman of the Small Business Bureau.

I warmly welcome the opportunity that this Bill offers and the manner in which the Minister explained it. It shines a light on the key element here: late payments. In many parts of the country, we see evidence of the consequences of this, including a visible deterioration in the range of commercial activity on our high streets. We have even seen the growth of charity shops, however admirable their causes, go into reverse, despite lower business rates for them because of the more recent national insurance hikes and high electricity prices.

What is true is that the British Business Bank and the Office of the Small Business Commissioner provide reassurance and support, yet far too many businesses close every day, with all the consequences for employment; hence the welcome increases in the authority and empowerment of the Small Business Commissioner, including naming and shaming and the enforcement of fines.

At the heart of this is businesses having confidence; I know this as one who started a business. Confidence is fundamental for start-ups. Of course, further risk assessments always arise when expansion is contemplated and the velocity of payments becomes even more crucial. Is the Minister satisfied that those with small businesses are, or will be, able to go online and check out the payment policies of larger supplier organisations?

Information is the key. Is the Minister content that, where possible, the average time to pay is clearly indicated? Nothing would be more valuable than being able to start a new search with ease by simply entering the business name of a supplier. It is one thing to have a payment performance report, but how can it best be used and, importantly, ensure the monitoring of evidence? It would be good for smaller businesses to feel comfortable about accessing a league table indicating the time to pay. This would incentivise suppliers to be the best. Supermarkets already supply this information. If the best suppliers are clearly known, they will attract business and fulfil this role. This would enhance the integrity of the supply chain.

Then it comes to enforcement. Is the Minister satisfied that the office of small business, with enhanced powers, has the capacity to be effective in representing SMEs’ interests? For example, how many individuals will be attached to this role in the future, which is so vital given its expanded duties?

A number of local authorities do, admirably, pay rapidly, so I turn to the 60-day ruling. If there is the possibility—and I hope not—that this will cause a drift upwards, elongating payment times rather than the reverse, then this would be regrettable. I would welcome clarification about public authorities paying in 30 days, but why cannot private companies do the same? This is a question that I have been asked to put forward this afternoon.

We want to attract more foreign businesses to boost our GDP, highlighting the importance of getting not only the right legislation but a clear message that this country is open for business. For 10 years, like others I was one of the Prime Minister’s trade envoys. Access to information about business opportunities in this country has hugely increased over this period. I pay tribute to our embassies abroad in this pursuit. Nevertheless, our export and import relationships are not at the sophisticated and all-embracing level that we find so frequently in other countries, where export activity is promoted through SMEs by these countries and through encouraging their activity abroad, supporting and creating an environment for our small businesses to thrive. They are, after all, the seed corn of the economy. This would be very welcome to all of us in your Lordships’ House, but there is certainly more work to be done.