Sir Gavin Williamson recently met with Clare Gill, owner of Just Blinds Ltd in Cannock, to discuss serious issues facing the company due to a dispute with payment provider Elavon.
The business has had over £13,000 in card payments frozen without a clear explanation, despite having no prior financial irregularities. The situation has placed significant strain on operations, staff, and cashflow — and raised wider concerns about the treatment of small businesses by payment processing companies.
Sir Gavin said: “What’s happened to Clare and her team at Just Blinds is simply unacceptable. There needs to be greater transparency, fairer regulation, and a proper appeals process for cases like this. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy — they deserve support, not suspicion.”
Sir Gavin will be raising the issue with relevant regulatory bodies and ministers to push for better protections for SMEs.