UK government to appoint ‘freelance champion’

Did a small design business do this?

Image © Crown copyright

HIS MAJESTY'S government has promised to appoint a “freelance champion” by the end of the year. What's one of those?? The draft terms of reference are interesting, but do not reflect actual clout. We note that the post has less of that than the “freelance commissioner” that Lord Clancarty proposed on 23 July - and saw voted down.

In summary, the government's Creative Industries Sector Plan says the Champion will “advocate for the sector’s creative freelancers within government and be a member of the Creative Industries Council”. BECTU, the union for stage and screen, hails their impending existence as a victory.

Late payment promise

Clearly a decision has been taken to give the appearance of freelance friendliness. On 30 July the UK government announced a plan to stiffen late payment rules - indeed, “to introduce the toughest laws on late payments in the G7”. How? giving “stronger powers to the Small Business Commissioner to empower them to wield fines, worth potentially millions of pounds, against the biggest firms who persistently choose to pay their suppliers late“.

The lobbying to insert loopholes into that will be... interesting.

© Mike Holderness

Interest and penalty calculator existing late payment rules