Select committee: Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee
Recommendation 25
15th Report – Small business strategy
Published 11 Feb 2026
Addressed to Department for Business and Trade
Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee Small business strategy All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
Bogus self-employment means today’s high street is not a level playing field for small firms. While practices like renting a chair are legitimate, the current framework’s lack of clarity makes it too easy for firms to use bogus self-employment to cut costs and avoid legal responsibilities. In line with its previous commitment, the Government should now act to ensure that the law rewards, rather than punishes, SME employers. (Conclusion, Paragraph 106)
From: Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee, 15th Report – Small business strategy (HC 1057), 11 February 2026
Government response
No government response linked yet: deadline 11 April 2026, 204 days ago.