Bureaucracy now the biggest burden for small businesses

Red tape is the most pressing concern for small businesses, according to new research by the Forum for Private Business (FPB).

In a quarterly survey it reveals that red tape has replaced business rates as the largest concern of small businesses.

"Red tape is clearly shown as the highest single barrier to small business growth. It is strangling many small firms. It should be targeted as top of the agenda for action to support the business community," said Nick Goulding, chief executive of the FPB.

Lack of employee skills, business rates, national insurance contributions and tax administration were also highlighted as issues of concern for small businesses.

The view was supported last week by the Bank of England's annual report into finance of small firms. The bank says that regulations such as the changes to the consumer credit act and EU directives are adding to the red tape faced by small businesses, including pubs.

Kate Nicholls, of the pub industry's Red Tape Group, said: "We would entirely concur with both these results. Red Tape is a very big concern for tenants and licensees across the board. The government has gone some way to reduce the burdens but it is no where near enough."

But disappointingly only one licensee has written into shadow trade secretary Tim Yeo after he called on them to share their red tape problems with him. Mr Yeo set up a campaign in February to combat the suffocating amounts of unnecessary regulation and is presenting them to a panel of experts.

The shadow trade secretary has already submitted concerns over the issues surrounding the entertainment aspects of the new Licensing Bill.

Mr Yeo's campaign has the support of Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries chairman David Thompson, who joined the panel to fight the unnecessary rules that swamp licensees in bureaucracy. But more licensees are being urged to get on board.

Chris Campbell, secretary to the better regulation advisors, has called on licensees to contact them with any red tape issues. "We need to be made aware of what the real issues are," he warned.

"We want to get a list of regulations we can look at over the next year."

Voice your concerns to Tim Yeo, 1 Parliament Street, London, SW1 or email: campbellc@parliament.uk