By Business & Finance 
Ireland’s SMEs are faced with a serious lack of the supports and facilities needed to grow according to a survey of over 500 business managers throughout Ireland.
The survey carried out by Big Red Cloud, a leading supplier of online account’s software to the SME market in Ireland, highlighted the differences between the challenges faced by those starting up, compared with the hurdles faced by already established SMEs.
49% of respondents surveyed felt that access to credit was the number one issue affecting start-ups.
However, taxation and regulation, as well as compliance issues were cited as the big challenges for already established SMEs
Marc O’Dwyer, CEO of Big Red Cloud, commented: “There is no doubt that many of Ireland’s business owners are feeling a certain degree of discontent with the lack of Government and financial supports afforded to them when trying to grow and develop their business.”
He continued: “Far from pointing the finger at the banks for slowing their growth, 66% of SMEs point to Government-controlled issues of taxation, regulation and compliance and a general lack of Government support as the key impediments to job-delivering growth.
“What has emerged strongly from the survey is the balanced perception business owners have – they are not asking for something for nothing. They know that’s not the way the world of commerce works… The views of Ireland’s small businesses – the ones who expand and broaden the tax base – thereby generating the money to fund our state – must be listened to,” O’Dwyer concluded.
