The government must focus on getting larger firms to pay small suppliers on time, according to one industry body.

In news which might interest business insurance customers, the Forum of Private Business (FPB) warned that the growing trend for companies to increase their payment periods could cause problems.

Phil Orford, the FPB's chief executive, stated that not being paid when they are expecting can only damage small firms.

He said: "Unilateral changes to payment terms, and the late payment of invoices, seriously impact on the health of small businesses."

The situation is being made even worse as many companies are struggling to access traditional sources of finance, Mr Orford added.

He called on the government to introduce a code of conduct for payment terms in order to prevent unilateral changes.

It might also interest business insurance customers to know the British Chambers of Commerce has called for more funding to be made available to small firms.

According to the body, many companies face going out of business as they cannot access credit.

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