Phil Smith, managing director of Business West, the organisation behind Bristol Chamber of Commerce, said while the Budget offered a number of initiatives that were likely to benefit the region’s businesses it lacked any measure that would tackle big issues such as transport, housing and infrastructure.
“The creative and hospitality industries, which are significant contributors to the South West’s economy, should welcome the Chancellor’s specific tax measures to support them,” Phil, pictured, added. 
“We also welcome the news that the government has reached agreement with Hitachi to purchase the Oldbury-on-Severn site in South Gloucestershire.
“Development of this site could generate thousands of jobs and help boost the economy. It also further underscores our region as a clean energy hub.”
The recovery loan extension should help the region’s small-to-medium sized businesses navigating challenging times, and some should benefit from the change in the VAT threshold, he said.
“However, what the region is still lacking is a long-term strategy that helps support a strong economy and our businesses and communities to thrive,” he said.
“We need initiatives that address fundamental structural issues, such as low productivity and sluggish growth.
“We know our region’s businesses want significant action on key issues like transport, housing and infrastructure, something that was lacking in this spring budget.”
For Ben Shorrock, managing director of the region’s technology network techSPARK, there was little for the sector to celebrate.
“Although the Chancellor made encouraging noises about the tech sector’s importance to our regions and nations, there has been little real investment to show for it,” said Ben, pictured.
“New devolution deals and specific investments in green tech and manufacturing are encouraging, but ultimately, they are not amounts that move the needle.”
He said it was relieving to see the government U-turn on angel investment rules, which would have made it even more difficult for women and other diverse founders and investors to be part of the investment ecosystem.
“Enabling more investment from pension funds and supporting tech businesses to list is a move in the right direction but a small part of the overall picture,” he added.
“The recent EY Regional Economic Forecast makes clear that places with strong tech communities grow faster than those without.
“Focusing on building tech communities throughout the UK would make a real difference to the economy and people’s lives.”
The Budget was a missed opportunity to address issues impacting on the housing market in cities like Bristol, according to Tim Harris, pictured, head of South West & Wales at international property agency JLL.
“That policies in this Budget have been targeted at people over businesses is of little surprise in the run up to a General Election,” he said.
“Yet some in the property sector may view this as a missed opportunity to stimulate development.
“Bristol is currently one of the most attractive places to live in the UK, thanks to great universities, a thriving business scene and exciting nightlife.
“However, sales and rental prices in the city centre are continuing to surge, with average rents rising by 5.3% last year.
“To prevent the area from becoming a victim of its own success, it’s integral that steps are taken to address the need for more quality inner city housing to help realise the economic potential on offer here.”
Hoteliers in Bristol said the Budget had “once again left their businesses out in the cold and facing extremely challenging times ahead”.
With an increase in the National Living Wage taking effect next month as a result of Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement, the hospitality sector is under more pressure than ever.
Ahead of this week’s Budget, trade body UKHospitality warned of “irreversible damage” to the nation’s ‘world-leading’ hospitality sector if the Chancellor did not offer some comfort.
More than 40 MPs also signed a letter to Jeremy Hunt calling on him to support the hospitality and tourism industries, including a temporary cut to the lower rate of employer National Insurance contributions and reducing the rate of VAT for the sector, as the government did during the pandemic.
But Raphael Herzog, pictured, chair of the Bristol Hoteliers Association (BHA) – which represents 40 hotels in and around the city with around 4,000 rooms between them – said: “It appears as if all those pleas have fallen on deaf ears and we’ve been left out in the cold again.
“We will, of course, continue to do everything we can to continue to keep going but it’s going to be a lot harder without the government recognising the massive contribution hospitality makes to the national economy, as well as how beneficial it is to people’s mental health.
“We won’t give up. We need to carry on putting pressure on the government by lobbying, which raises the old issue which came up during the pandemic about there being no government minister specifically dedicated to the hospitality sector.”
