Small Firms Minister Calls On UK Plc's To Uphold Prompt Payment

Patricia Hewitt, Small Firms Minister, is spearheading a new initiative targeted at UK plc's by the Better Payment Practice Group. All UK plc's that have not signed up to the Better Payment Practice Code (BPPC) are receiving a letter from the Minister encouraging them to show their commitment to prompt payment by becoming a signatory. Established in 1998, the code is a public demonstration that an organisation is committed to prompt payment and is made up of four payment practices that signatories must uphold:

• Agree payment terms at the outset of a deal and stick to them.

• Explain payment procedures to suppliers.

• Pay bills in accordance with any contract agreed with suppliers, or as required by law.

• Tell suppliers without delay when an invoice is contested and settle disputes quickly.

Current signatories to the code represent a 20% contribution to Gross Domestic Product and include all Government departments and agencies and many local authorities. By recruiting more signatories it is intended that the code will become a trusted and valued benchmark of business ethics.

Additionally, the BPPG has supported the publication of league tables showing the average payment times of UK plc's and their large private subsidiaries. March will see the publication of the second edition of the Private Sector Payment Performance League Tables by the Federation of Small Businesses and Dun and Bradstreet. Crucially, this brings the payment performance of UK plc's into one document and forms an important source of reference for businesses

Patricia Hewitt, Small Firms Minister said:

"The BPPG is encouraging more businesses to sign up to the principles of the Code and demonstrate a responsible attitude to doing business. If more businesses become signatories the Code should become a trusted and valued indication of the business ethics of the organisations that sign."

Speaking on behalf of the BPPG, Stephen Alambritis of the Federation of Small Businesses commented:

"We welcome the Minister’s support. We cannot create an enterprise culture in the UK unless there is a framework to foster it. The Minister’s support is invaluable in helping to change ethics in the UK."

Editor’s Note

A copy of the Minister’s letter is enclosed

The Better Payment Practice Group (BPPG) was formed in 1997 as a partnership between the public and private sectors. Its aim is to improve the payment culture of the UK business community and reduce the incidence of the late payment of commercial debt. This is being achieved through the delivery of a package of measures, including:

* A Better Payment Practice Code, outlining the principles of good payment procedures, combined with a logo which businesses will be able to use if they adopt the Code, accompanied by a major campaign to highlight the economic reasons for paying on time.
*Support for the publication of private and public sector payment performance tables
*An extensive education campaign to help businesses with late payment problems, including free guides on credit management, a website with credit management and debt recovery information and a national seminar programme on credit management.
*Promoting awareness of the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act.

You can keep up to date with the Better Payment Practice Campaign by sending us an email

A full list of signatories to the Better Payment Practice Code can be found here.

A copy of the Better Payment Practice logo can be emailed on request, saved either as an EPS, TIF or Bitmap file.