The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said it was "glad" Alistair Darling was paying attention to the submissions it had received from the business community but it urged him to take urgent action on the issue.

A spokesman said:

"People need to be able to make decisions about their businesses - whether to invest, or whether to sell up. This uncertainty mustn't be allowed to continue."

Meanwhile, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said it had hoped the situation would be resolved quickly, as business owners lived under the uncertainty of whether to sell up before taper relief is abolished in April next year.

Mr Darling announced in the House of Commons that he would not be publicising changes to his Pre-Budget Report, in which the controversial changes were included, until the New Year.