27 BUSINESS Entrepreneurs Circle founder Nigel Botterill has hit out at how small business owners are treated in the UK, saying new support pledges “ring hollow” for many after years of rising costs, taxes and regulation. His comments come as the government unveiled fresh plans to boost the sector through increased public spending with small businesses and measures designed to unlock around £100 million a year in additional investment for innovative firms. “Small business owners are sick of being treated like the nation’s cash machine, squeezed harder every year, buried in red tape, and then rolled out whenever politicians want to sound progrowth,” he said. Botterill said the announcements focus heavily on helping existing businesses grow, but risk overlooking those who have yet to start at all. “Buying from small businesses is important, and helping them grow is important,” he said. “But most people never even get to that stage.” Botterill, who appeared on Channel 5’s Rich House, Poor House in February, said his recent experience working closely with an aspiring entrepreneur has changed how he sees the problem. Until recently, his work focused primarily on established business owners, but his experience working with Damo has shifted his attention further upstream, towards people who have yet to take the first step. “What we’re seeing is not a lack of ambition,” he said. “It’s a lack of clarity about what to do first.” His comments come as nearly 10,000 people have registered for his free StartUp Incubator programme, designed to help individuals move from business idea to generating income. Botterill said the level of demand reflects what is happening at the very start of the entrepreneurial journey, with many people trying to build businesses alongside existing jobs and without structured support. “A lot of people are doing this in evenings and weekends,” he said. “They don’t need more information. They need direction and a clear order of execution.” One early example is Damo, a Lincolnbased courier who featured on Channel 5’s Rich House, Poor House and worked with Botterill after filming. At the time, Damo was working long hours while living on around £30 a week after bills and trying to build a car valeting side business. Six months later, he has left his job and recorded a monthly income of £4,500 through his business. “Damo didn’t lack work ethic or ideas,” Botterill said. “He needed clarity and momentum. Once you give people that, the results follow.” Botterill said the response to the programme highlights a structural gap in how entrepreneurship is supported. “You cannot tax the life out of entrepreneurs, regulate them to exhaustion, and then expect confidence to follow from a headline,” he said. “If government truly backed small business, owners would feel it in their bank accounts, their workload and their confidence, not just in another announcement.” Botterill said the priority should be helping more people take the first step. “If you want more small businesses supplying into the economy and more businesses attracting investment, you have to help more people start in the first place,” he said. “Stop treating small businesses like a cash machine,” says Entrepreneurs Circle founder Nigel Botterill after £100m support pledge A HELPING HAND
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