She was speaking after the latest figures published yesterday by the Bank of England revealed that West Midlands business failures were up by 40% between 1997 and 2002 and have been growing by a further 7.9% in the first three quarters of 2003.
"Small businesses are the lifeblood of the economy and yet we see them going to the wall," said Liz Lynne.
"We need to make sure that businesses have a break from red tape whether it be from Brussels or Westminster. Before legislation is brought forward the impact on small businesses must be properly assessed. If we don't cut some of this burden we could see even more businesses collapse under the weight."
