A campaign encouraging top 100 FTSE companies to commit to paying suppliers quickly has seen ten more sign up, it was reported yesterday. The campaign has been backed by various MPs, the Federation of Small Business (FSB), the Institute of Credit Management (ICM) and the Forum of Private Business (FPB). Letters were sent out to the companies earlier in the summer, with a deadline of 31st August for responses to be submitted. Although many didn’t reply, ten companies including Vodafone Group Services Ltd, Standard Life and Royal Dutch Shell all responded positively and indicated they would sign up to the code. John Walker, national chairman of Federation of Small Businesses, felt they’d made some progress, “It is good news that ten of the biggest companies in the UK have signed up to the campaign. We now need to see more following their example." “Too many businesses struggle with their cashflow because of late payments and it’s time for this to stop. It just isn’t fair that small firms struggle because bigger businesses take too long to pay. I want to see all big businesses committing to being fair and paying on time,” he concluded.
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