Emma Jones CBE celebrates first anniversary as the UK’s Small Business Commissioner

Emma Jones CBE is celebrating her first anniversary as the UK’s Small Business Commissioner, marking a year of intense advocacy. Her first 12 months have been focused on accelerating payment times, leveraging digital technologies, and protecting the cash flow of the UK’s 5. 5 million small firms.

The anniversary coincides with a historic turning point for small businesses. The government’s landmark Commercial Payments Bill (also introduced as the Small Business Protections Bill) recently entered Parliament. This legislation is set to establish the toughest late payment regime in the G7.

The new framework will fundamentally expand the powers of the Office of the Small Business Commissioner (OSBC) from a mediation body into a robust enforcement authority. Having started, scaled, and sold businesses myself, I know first-hand how draining it is to chase the money you have already rightfully earned.

This year, our small but mighty team has focused heavily on reducing the hours business owners waste on non-productive tasks so they can reinvest that energy back into growth. Late payment isn’t just an administrative inconvenience—it is a massive barrier to excelling.

Joint research from the Department for Business and Trade and the OSBC shows that UK small businesses lose a staggering 133 million hours of staff time every single year purely chasing overdue invoices. That averages out to 86 hours per affected firm. This is time stolen directly from product development, training, and expanding operations.

As we look to the year ahead, the new legislation represents a monumental shift. It gives us the teeth we need to end this culture of delay and unlock the full potential of our small business community.

– Emma Jones CBE, Small Business Commissioner Key Achievements in Year One Over the last 12 months, Emma Jones has reshaped the OSBC’s outreach and engagement by: Championing the Supplier: Acted as a powerful, independent advocate for micro-businesses and SMEs dealing with large corporate supply chains. This has included getting £1.

5 million back for small businesses experiencing late payments. Driving Digital Support: Launching guidance along with a pledge signed by major UK eCommerce marketplaces (including eBay, Temu, PayPal, SumUp) and producing AI advice for small businesses.

Shaping Policy: Working closely with the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and research partners to guide the process that laid the groundwork for the incoming Bill including looking globally at best practice.

Changing Payment Culture: Since its launch there are now over 600 business across the UK on the Fair Payment Code including: HSBC, Barclays, NatWest, Nationwide, Heathrow Airport, Amey, Kier, AXA, BEA Systems, Boeing, BT and Welsh Water.

New Ways of Reaching Out: Grown our social media reach and launched an interview series called ‘Get the money moving’ with leaders in the fair payment space. In person Emma has engaged with over 5,000 people and delivered monthly SME Safaris that see civil servants travel to meet founders in their real-life trading setting.

Looking Ahead: A New Era of Enforcement The next year of Emma’s term will be defined by preparing the business community for the implementation of the Commercial Payments (Late Payments) Bill currently going through Parliament.

The legislation includes several major reforms to give owners their time back: OSBC Enforcement: The Commissioner will gain powers to investigate larger businesses persistent poor payment practices, adjudicate disputes outside the court system, and issue financial penalties to persistent offenders that could run into the £10s of millions.

Anonymity for Claimants: The OSBC will be able to investigate large firms based on anonymous complaints, protecting small suppliers from corporate retaliation. 60-Day Term Cap: Large companies will only be able to impose a maximum of 60 days payment terms on smaller suppliers.

Mandatory 8% Late Interest: Statutory interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate will apply automatically to overdue invoices, removing a company’s ability to contract out of late fees.

Before the legislation comes into force Emma is prioritising her focus on ensuring the Office continues to deliver quality support and casework for small firms, welcoming more businesses onto the Fair Payment Code, and working on a future for the Office that could see it cover some of its own costs, whilst positioning the UK as a global leader in moving to a prompt payment economy.