UK trims corporate reporting, promising £450m in savings for businesses

The Department for Business and Trade announced a package of reforms that will dramatically reduce the volume of corporate reporting required in the United Kingdom. By removing a swathe of mandatory forms and audits for small and medium‑sized enterprises, the government says the changes could free up more than £450 million each year.

What the reforms entail

Under the plan, SMEs, including family‑run firms, will no longer have to file the lengthy annual reports that currently average 98,000 words, a length the department likened to J.R.R. Tolkien’s *The Hobbit*. For the largest listed companies in the FTSE 100, the average report runs to about 152,000 words. The overhaul also makes electronic communication with shareholders the default, effectively ending the reliance on printed statements.

“No‑one goes into business to fill out forms,” said Jonathan Reynolds, business secretary. “For years, hardworking firms in this country have been weighed down by pen‑pushing paperwork and frustrating costs, ticking boxes that do nothing to help them grow their business.”

The reforms arrive after a 2023 survey found that 81 per cent of executives at the UK’s biggest listed firms felt reporting mandates were eating up valuable time. The government also signalled an interest in using artificial intelligence to automate parts of the reporting process, although no concrete AI‑driven tools have been announced yet.

Industry reaction

Business groups welcomed the move but urged caution. Jordan Cummins, UK competitiveness director at the Confederation of British Industry, said the changes could boost investor confidence if they are rolled out in a “future‑proofed and agile framework”. Alan Vallance, chief executive of ICAEW, praised the initiative but warned that “all stakeholders should be listened to, and all options fully considered”.

Dean Beale of the Centre for Public Interest Audit noted that the consultation “covers some of the right things”, especially the push for proportional reporting and fully digital information sources. Conversely, Andrew Moyser, head of audit at MHA, cautioned that stripping statutory audit requirements could create hidden traps that shift, rather than remove, compliance burdens.

Looking ahead

The reforms follow Labour’s decision to scrap the Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill, which would have replaced the Financial Reporting Council with a new Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority. While the government has paused that overhaul, it is keeping the door open for future changes to the audit regime.

Stakeholders now have a limited window to comment on the proposals, with a formal consultation running until the end of the month. If the feedback is positive, the digital‑first filing system could be live by early 2025, reshaping how UK companies interact with regulators and shareholders.

For businesses, the immediate benefit will be fewer pages to produce and lower filing fees. Over the longer term, a leaner reporting framework could make the UK a more attractive location for domestic and foreign investment, especially as other jurisdictions tighten their own compliance rules.