BFC praises 'industry's resilience' as it takes credit fight to Westminster

19th November 2009 | trade | British Furniture Confederation chairman Martin Jourdan has told how competitive the furniture industry remains and praised its resilience as he and a delegation of top furniture bosses lobbied senior Government officials to back up their commitment to the furniture industry in the Pre-Budget Report.

Jourdan, together with BFM md Roger Mason and Stuart Chadwick, BFM chairman, met with Gordon Brown's senior policy advisor Nick Butler and Lord Mandelson's special advisor Geoffrey Norris to urge the Government to take action on trade credit insurance and reduce furniture manufacturers' national insurance costs through a consumption tax.

It has also called for action on illegally imported furniture.

Jourdan said, 'I'm pleased our discussions have shown the Government's commitment to supporting the industry. The British furniture industry has been resilient to the economic downturn, and though things remain difficult, we've shown how competitive we are.'