Rules to save millions in reporting & accountancy fees proposed More than 100 thousand UK businesses could save in excess of £600 million in accountancy and administration costs every year under proposals to reduce financial reporting requirements, published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills today.

Leading entrepreneurs call for an SME Manifesto of bolder measures The London Entrepeneurial Exchange, the Voice of UK entrepreneurs warns that initiatives announced so far are not enough and demanded targeted action to help small business.

European Commission report says economic climate threatening SME performance The European Commission has presented its 2010 small and medium-sized enterprises report "Are EU SMEs recovering from the crisis?" and it is positive reading from a UK perspective.

Government announces huge investment in e-infrastructure Today the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has announced a £145 million boost to improve Britain’s e-infrastructure.

Government urges businesses to tackle employment red tape Businesses have today been called upon by ministers to help tackle employment related law, bureaucracy and red tape in the latest phase of the Employment Law Review.

Business insolvency rate in the UK hits 5 month low There is very positive news out today as the latest Insolvency Index, from business risk specialists Experian, has revealed that the rate of insolvencies dropped to 0.08 per cent in August, its lowest point since February.

Prime Minister launches campaign to put Great back into Britain in 2012 The Prime Minister has vowed to defy the economic downturn and predictions of tourism displacement around the Olympics by announcing a £1bn boost in Games-related business.

Google set to help Britain's small businesses grow Google is helping with a scheme to help Britain's small businesses grow online, starting with firms in Liverpool.

Government must back bank ring-fencing to boost SME lending The government must back rigorous ring-fencing of retail banking from investment banking in order to encourage banks to lend to high-growth, high-risk SMEs. Doing so is crucial to the UK’s economic recovery, according to a report by Will Hutton published today from the Big Innovation Centre.

Hunt to find the best new young entrepreneurs launched A lack of jobs and higher university tuition fees have led to a growing number of teenagers and young people aspiring to be their own boss with a massive 80 per cent of 16 year olds saying that they have had a business idea for two years and they are now ready to set up their firms and become the next Richard Branson or Lord Sugar.

Apprenticeships red tape is slashed in bid to attract greater take-up Skills Minister John Hayes has announced a package of new measures to make it easier for employers to take on large numbers of apprentices.

Female bosses break down pay barrier & now paid more than men New figures released by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) show that female executives are earning as much as their male counterparts for the first time since its records began, albeit only at junior executive level.

Barclays launches £100million renewable energy fund for farmers Barclays has launched a £100 million fund for UK farmers investing in renewable energy, tracking the massive groundswell of interest from farmers seeking to cut energy bills and generate new income.

Most bosses ‘don’t expect’ women to return after maternity leave New research has found that almost two thirds of employers do not expect female employees to return to work after their maternity leave; of which the majority say they believe this because of ‘previous experience.’

Twenty one additional Enterprise Zones announced The government has announced additional locations for new enterprise zones as it tries to boost economic growth across the country by providing cheaper business rates, superfast broadband and lower levels of planning control.

All aboard as Startup Britain launches nationwide bus tour StartUp Britain, the major enterprise initiative launched in May this year, will begin a bus tour of some of the UK’s entrepreneurial hot spots in a bid to celebrate, inspire and accelerate Britain’s start-up talent.

Lacklustre growth expected this year with only moderate growth in 2012 The UK economy will continue to grow, but at a sluggish rate in 2011 and pick up modestly in 2012, according to the CBI’s latest economic forecast.

Businesses compete for share of £950M growth fund The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has received more than 490 bids competing for a share of £950 million from the Regional Growth Fund.

Young Brits mean business: eight in ten want to become entrepreneurs According to the survey more than three-quarters of 11 to 18-year-olds say they would like to start their own business in the future and just under half of the 2,000 youngsters questioned say that they have always wanted to be their own boss.

Acas conciliation service sees steep rise in demand for its services The conciliation service Acas has seen a 15 per cent rise in demand for its help dealing with industrial disputes during the past year.