Small businesses want to hire. Young people want to work. So why does Rachel Reeves make it so hard?

And yet for many of us running small businesses - and for the young people we employ - it never really feels like it’s for us.

We’re told the Budget will drive growth, increase productivity, and help the economy “level up”. But when you’re running a small business in a city like Liverpool, the reality on the ground often doesn’t match the rhetoric.

At Spice Kitchen, we’re a Living Wage employer. We’ve always believed in paying people fairly - especially the younger team members who are trying to build a life against the backdrop of rising rents, student loan pressures, and living costs that seem to increase month after month.

But those rising costs affect us too. With threshold freezes, tax rises, and inflation across the supply chain, we’ve had to become more cautious than ever with hiring.

Like many small businesses, we’ve already made the efficiencies we can. We’re running at our lowest headcount in years, not because we don’t want to grow, but because every additional cost lands directly on our doorstep.

When government policies squeeze both employers and employees at the same time, opportunities dry up. And it’s the under-40s - the very people trying to build their skills, careers, and families - who end up paying for it.

What doesn’t get mentioned often enough is that small businesses are already quietly doing the government’s job. We’re the ones providing early-career experience, training on the job, and real-world pathways into employment.

We’re the ones investing in communities, giving people a chance, and building workplaces where young people feel valued. But we can only do that sustainably if the system works with us, not against us.

That’s why this year, I hope we see a Budget that measures success differently - not just through GDP projections, but through opportunity.

A Budget that recognises the contribution of small business, supports fair wages without penalising employers, and makes it possible for young people to build stable, confident futures.

Small businesses want to hire. Young people want to work. The future of our economy depends on both. What we need now is a Budget that makes it possible.

____________________

Sanjay Aggarwal is co-founder & chief spice officer at Spice Kitchen.

LBC Opinion provides a platform for diverse opinions on current affairs and matters of public interest.

The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official LBC position.

To contact us email opinion@lbc.co.uk