AS Chancellor Gordon Brown prepares his Spring Budget for Wednesday, March 16, businesses throughout York and North Yorkshire are preparing their own "wish list".

And why not? In a pre-election Budget there is every chance that the public "Will" could become the Chancellor's "Way". So, if business wishes in our region come true, Mr Brown will announce less red tape, simpler legislation, encouragement for hi-tech ventures, a slashing of business rates and a freezing of fuel duty, among many actions designed to stoke the fires of the booming economy here.

Len Cruddas, chief executive of the 700-member York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, wanted a review of red tape. He pointed out that since the Government came to power in 1997 its introduction of 46 major regulations had cost businesses £39 billion -not taking into account 1,100 lesser regulations introduced.

High on his wish list was a decision by Mr Brown to give all future legislation affecting business a five-year expiry period and to clean up the mess of "overlay".

"The problem is there's too much legislative flotsam lying around. No laws ever get replaced. They are always as well as, or on top of."

He wanted the Chancellor to continue with a steady, no-surprises economy, but also wants a "leaner, more efficient public sector", as well as removing tax penalties from pension funds, a "careful" raising of the stamp duty threshold, and greater tax incentives on investment in hi-tech start-up ventures.

Simon Williams, North Yorkshire secretary of the Federation of Small Business, which has about 2,700 members in the region, said: "We want the Government to extend the banding level of the small business rate relief to £25,000 rateable values."

Increasing fuel costs needed to be dealt with. "The huge burden feeds through to small businesses in a disproportionate way. They can't absorb like the bigger companies can."

The Yorkshire Engineering and Manufacturing Industry (EEF), which represents 400 of the region's most important manufacturers, has already urged the Chancellor to "send a powerful signal to business, with a package of measures to show boosting productivity remains his fundamental economic goal".

Duncan Meredith, senior tax consultant for Garbutt & Elliott of York, said the Chancellor's plans for a Tax Law Rewrite" to simplify wording of existing legislation would be "a good opportunity to be radical in modernising the approach to fusing new legislation with old".

He also called for tax breaks for York's university spin-out technology companies.

Updated: 10:26 Friday, March 04, 2005