A spokesman for MGI Watson Buckle said increasing EC regulation and red tape from the UK Government was causing major headaches for small business owners, as reported in the Bradford Telegraph and Argus.

He said that the forms that business owners have to fill in are the same for both one-man bands and large businesses.

The accountants' views echo those of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), which has said less regulation for small and medium businesses will boost its initiative to modernise European policy for small businesses.