Finance minister Sammy Wilson says that the Northern Ireland Spin Outs scheme's ability to fund innovation in small firms and build a strong enterprise culture is essential for economic recovery.

Wilson comments: 'Our universities and local companies have demonstrated that they can provide world-class research. Government must seek to help companies convert this research into commercial applications which can in turn help to build world-class companies.'

The package will include a £5 million venture capital fund which will offer investments of between £50,000 and £250,000 to start-ups and early-stage companies that can demonstrate potential for high growth levels, while a separate £3 million fund will provide financing to non-university enterprises.

This week, prime minister Gordon Brown unveiled a venture capital fund to support technology-based start-ups and small businesses, with the aim of raising £1 billion in finance over the next ten years.

The latest Nottingham University Business School Barometer shows that 44 per cent of small firms opted to reserve judgement on whether the business climate was improving and 34 per cent have seen growth remain static since January.

In addition, poor access to finance is still viewed as being the major obstacle to recovery, as two-thirds of companies say that credit conditions have not improved over the last three months, with 24 per cent saying they have worsened. Only eight per cent said access has become easier.

One respondent comments: 'Banks are being particularly difficult to deal with and not helping the situation.'

The barometer also shows that some small firms' cash flow is being squeezed by falling revenues, with 27 per cent feeling compelled to cut prices to maintain their customer base.

However, eight per cent say their costs are being eased by falling prices from suppliers.

In a recent Federation of Small Businesses survey, 23 per cent of respondents said they have seen an increase in trade since the start of the year, an improvement on the 16 per cent in February.

According to the organisation's RedundancyWatch project, the proportion of firms contacting the CIPD legal helpline for advice on how to lay off staff declined slightly from 19 per cent in the first quarter of 2009 to 18 per cent in the second.

The group claims this indicates a steady rate of redundancies can be expected in the coming months, saying this effect has been experienced previously.

Dr John Philpott, CIPD chief economist and public policy director, told the group's annual employment law conference: 'Our CIPD helpline data offers little comfort that there will be any significant let up in the redundancy rate in the next few months.'

The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show that UK unemployment has reached a 12-year high of more than 2.2 million.

Commenting, the Confederation of British Industry predicted that unemployment will hit three million in early 2010.

Finance secretary John Swinney reveals that the first quarter of 2009 saw a 3.4 per cent decrease in the level of Scottish export sales when compared to the year before, following a 9.6 per cent fall in the last quarter of 2008.

However, he points out that Scotland's performance compares well with other countries', as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reported export levels declined by 11.6 per cent in the US and 31.5 per cent in Japan over the same period.

Swinney adds that the new figures show the importance of recent Scottish government initiatives to support economic recovery and highlights the extra £3 million which was invested in the Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service to double the number of firms it can support.

'Through our comprehensive economic recovery programme we have accelerated capital spending to support up to 15,000 jobs and provide a direct and timely stimulus to our manufacturing and construction sectors,' he explains.

The recent Purchasing Managers' Index from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply showed that manufacturing production in the UK rose in June for the first time since March last year, but a lack of new orders means that the industry is still in contraction.

According to the London Development Agency (LDA), the scheme will be of particular benefit to businesses which provide frontline services, such as those in the tourism, transport, retail, hospitality and leisure industries.

Boris Johnson, mayor of London, comments: 'The training opportunities we are extending will be invaluable to all those businesses who are serious about taking on the overseas competition.'

The Regional Language Network London initiative will offer companies two courses, one which focuses on key phrases and cultural issues that workers need to be aware of and another which supports managers leading multicultural teams.

Geoff Newton, director of Olympic opportunities at the LDA, explains that the scheme is designed to ensure London firms have more chance of benefiting from the 2012 Games and encourage international visitors to return to the capital.

Earlier this year, the LDA highlighted the specialist training support which is being offered in the capital to help construction companies make the most of opportunities arising ahead of the 2012 Games.

Figures from the group claim that small and medium-sized manufacturers spend the equivalent of £1,230 million in the number of hours they take to meet regulatory requirements.

Companies with nine or less employees spend an average of 27 hours a month tackling paperwork, while those with between ten and 50 workers need around 50 hours.

Phil Orford, FPB chief executive, says: 'Many of Britain's manufacturers are finding the current trading conditions incredibly tough and can ill afford to spend precious time and money on dealing with excessive legislation.'

The organisation also reveals that health and safety laws cost small manufacturers the equivalent of £357 million a year, while employment legislation accounts for £320 million and red tape dealing with waste and the environment takes £112 million.

An earlier report from Eurochambres, the representative body for Europe's chambers of commerce, claimed that over the past 11 years 1 trillion (£0.84 trillion) has been spent by firms across the continent complying with regulation.

A poll of 4,400 of the organisation's members shows that their confidence and outlook is improving when compared to previous surveys.

According to the research, 23 per cent of small companies have experienced an increase in trade since the start of the year, rising from the 16 per cent reported in February.

In addition, it shows that the proportion of small firms citing the cost of finance as a major problem has fallen from 40 per cent to a quarter.

The survey also claims 68 per cent of respondents plan to expand in the next six months through increasing their investment in marketing, recruitment and new products, with 57 per cent saying they are 'quite confident' about their future prospects.

John Wright, national chairman of the FSB, comments: 'Small businesses are naturally flexible and innovative in recessions and these figures show that despite the very many negative forces on them, they are being cautiously optimistic and are looking to expand.'

Recently, the Business Inflation Guide, published by insurance provider More Than, claimed the cost of running a small firm fell by 1.4 per cent in the opening quarter of the year.

‘We are out of the recession,’ said Jones. ‘People will say we remain in a recession over the next 12 to 18 months but what we will be seeing from now on are just the consequences of hitting the bottom of the recession.’

Speaking at the BT Business Experience 2009 event in London, the Dragons’ Den star argued that if there was a better sense of entrepreneurship in the UK, then the recession would be ‘a lot more shallow’.

‘We lack the mindset of entrepreneurialism in this country. It requires forward thinking, clarity and self-belief and these need to be encouraged,’ he said.

By way of contrast, Jones noted that the US has a deeply-rooted culture of risk-taking. ‘We need more of that entrepreneurial attitude in this country and that can only happen through education,’ he said.

Jones has seen an unprecedented level of interest from young people in starting their own business, but he suggests many of them shy away from putting their ideas into action because the business skills of entrepreneurship are not taught in schools.

‘It’s all about education and that is why I set up the National Enterprise Academy,’ added the Dragon.

The Academy was set up last year and helps 16 to 18 years olds to study enterprise and entrepreneurship.

Click here for more information about BT Business Experience 2009

The government will invest £150 million in the UK Innovation Investment Fund, matching private sector investment, with the aim of raising £1 billion over the next ten years.

Investment will come from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Department of Energy and Climate Change and the Department of Health, with the focus being on clean technology, advanced manufacturing and the digital and life sciences.

Prime minister Gordon Brown comments: 'This fund will help build Britain's future by investing in key sectors. It will provide crucial support for our most promising start-ups and existing small companies just when they need it most.'

He also describes venture capital finance as the 'lifeblood of innovation' and claims the initiative will boost the UK's competitiveness by allowing research discoveries to be commercialised.

Lord Peter Mandelson, business secretary, adds that the fund will encourage venture capitalists to follow the government in supporting Britain's entrepreneurs and small companies.

Earlier this month, regional development agency Advantage West Midlands revealed that an extra £1.5 million has been channelled into the Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme to help small and medium-sized firms working on new aircraft projects.