Dragon Bannatyne supports Osborne growth plan

By Daily Mail Reporter
Updated: 06:40 EDT, 25 March 2011

George Osborne's 'vision for growth' continued to divide opinion last night as corporate Britain digested his second Budget as Chancellor.

Duncan Bannatye: Longstanding ally of Gordon Brown backs Osborne's vision for growth

Pro-enterprise policies such as the cut in corporation tax and the easing of rules on overseas corporate profits won plaudits from business leaders such as WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell and Dragons' Den star Duncan Bannatyne.

But more obscure proposals in the 126-page Plan For Growth published alongside the Budget met with bemusement or even ridicule.

Among the more dubious drivers of growth was help for tourism apps on smartphones, regulations for space tourism, and consultation on moving the first bank holiday in May.

Helen Miller, a research analyst at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said: 'These policies may have put fuel into the economy, but they'll do very little to improve how many miles we get to the gallon.'

There was a more positive response from Sorrell, however, who said he planned to move his advertising giant's tax base back to Britain from Ireland having read the smallprint of the Budget.

Bannatyne - a long-standing ally of Gordon Brown - also gave his backing, saying that Osborne was 'serious about growth and enterprise'.

The intervention, by a high-profile businessman who has donated to Labour in the past, is embarrassing for party leader Ed Miliband.

'I support George Osborne's Budget,' said Bannatyne. 'A sustainable recovery, across all sectors and all regions will only be driven by private sector investment, enterprise and innovation.'