ACCA says poor payment practices still rife and calls for greater transparency from business
A leading global accountancy body is urging the UK government to fix the scourge of late payments through practical solutions which businesses will understand and can work with.
ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) is supportive of the attempts by this administration to tackle poor payment practices in the UK, which harms small businesses and stifles growth. Its September 2025 research shows a staggering 35.6% of UK small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) reported problems with securing prompt payment.
Broadly supportive of the Late payments consultation: tackling poor payment practices, ACCA says requiring large companies’ audit committees, or where they don’t exist a responsible individual to take responsibility for the issue will increase transparency over companies’ payment practices.
But ACCA is also calling on the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) to take a pragmatic approach, so not to delay the introduction of a maximum payment term of 60 days for UK businesses. It is recommending adopting the well-known rule ‘comply or explain’ .
Glenn Collins, Head of Technical and Strategic Engagement, ACCA UK, said: ‘This is a more pragmatic as exceptions will be inevitable. Such an approach will help mitigate against any negative perceptions of the business environment that may be created if no allowances were made for those inevitable exceptions, while still ensuring business suppliers are fully informed before entering contracts.’
An ACCA key ask is to increase the powers of the Small Business Commissioner (SBC). Joe Fitzsimons, Policy Lead, UK and EEMA, said: ‘It is clear change is needed to tackle the late payment issue, and this would be best achieved by giving the SBC greater power. However, any additional powers must be matched with adequate resourcing. Adopting the Pollute Pays Principle -where persistent late payers bear the costs of SBC’s investigative work – would clearly help.’
One proposal which ACCA says should not be implemented is mandatory statutory interest. Other reforms, including additional powers for the SBC should first be implemented and a post-implementation review completed. At that point mandatory statutory interest could be the next step if adequate progress has not been made.
Lloyd Powell, Head of ACCA Cymru/Wales, said: ‘The issue of late payments has gone on too long. We need to ensure this issue does not become bogged down again. We have made practical suggestions to DBT that meets the needs of business of all sizes. The government should quickly enact solutions that will resonate and kick start growth.’
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