Entrepreneurs 'stifled' by tax

The Coalition's hopes of entrepreneurs leading the UK out of economic gloom are being stifled by the country's tax and regulatory regimes, a report out this morning will warn.

Some 71 per cent of the private businesses interviewed for a survey by accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers said the current system fails to support enterprise. That compares with just 59 per cent who took part in the 2007 edition of the "Enterprising UK" survey, based on the answers of decision makers at 300 private UK companies.

A total of 82 per cent had turnovers of £200m or less and are the sort of growing companies the Government is banking on to create jobs.