A poll by the Tenon Forum found that tax credits would motivate business owners to introduce green policies.

However, the survey also found that most small enterprises already had some environmentally friendly policies, with three-quarters recycling paper, 81% encouraging staff to turn off equipment when not in use, and a quarter promoting public transport and car sharing to their employees.

Andy Raynor from the Tenon Forum said:

"SMEs need Government to motivate and reward best environmental practices with tax credits so that green behaviour also makes a genuine difference to their bottom line."