IRELAND’S SMALL BUSINESS owners are placing the blame for their travails squarely on the shoulders of Government, with satisfaction deteriorating across all sectors.

That’s according to the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises (ISME) Government Satisfaction rating for the second quarter of the year.

The overall rating in the index has slipped from -32 to -41, with the survey also showing that business costs are seen to be the segment’s biggest bugbear, scoring a negative rating of -61.

ISME warned that despite positive indicators on the strength of the economy recently, the SME sector continues to labour constant business cost increases and a dearth of bank credit.

ISME chief executive Mark Fielding said:

“The SME sector has lost patience with an administration which has lost focus, distracted by their own internal political machinations. The sooner the reshuffle, the sooner we can have a Government re-focused on the economy and the continuing battle for recovery and growth.”

He said that the restoratoin of competitiveness through prudent cost control and the access to bank credit for SMEs must be two Government priorities.

“It is imperative that consumer sentiment is addressed through accurate and creditable communications to help dispel the uncertainty which is curtailing spending.”

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