39% of UK SMEs believe economy will need five years to recover from Covid-19

Four in 10 (39%) small business owners believe it will take at least five years for the UK economy to fully recover from the impact of lockdown and Covid-19, according to a new poll.

Research by the “#ForgottenLtd Campaign”, which is campaigning for fair and equal government support for small limited companies, polled more than 1,000 small business owners on the state of the UK economy.

Only 15% believe the economy will fully recover by the end of 2021, while more than a quarter (28%) said a full recovery will take up to three years. 18% believe it will take up to five years for the economy to bounce back.

But the biggest share of the vote (39%) went to those who believed it will be 2025 and beyond before the UK economy is back on its feet.

Gina Broadhurst, co-founder of the campaign said: “The results of this snap poll send out an unequivocal message to the government, namely that the small business community believes it will be a very long time before the UK economy bounces back.

“The small businesses we polled are unanimous that a full economic recovery will take years not months. But it’s these very same businesses that so many people depend on for their jobs, big companies for their supplies, and customers for their products and services.”

She added: “We are all linked so if small businesses are in trouble, we are all in trouble. But it’s not too late to save them. We call on the government to reconsider its unfair position on limited companies before it’s too late.”