Environment a major concern for SMEs

The government should be doing more to help small businesses implement environmental laws, it has been argued.

The British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) believes that the Carbon Trust - the government's energy efficiency agency - should be integrating more with the small business community.

Statistics released by the BCC show that small to medium enterprises (SMEs) saved over £1.1 billion in energy costs over the past year.

"If the government is going to meet ambitious emissions targets, it needs to refocus the Carbon Trust onto the wider business community, where they stand the best change of hitting these targets," said the BCC's director general, David Frost.

"Businesses are clearly doing their bit, but if the government is serious about reaching the targets it will have to step up its game."

Research by a leading IT firm last month showed that UK SMEs were among the world's best when it came to recognising new technologies.