Entrepreneurs 'generate over £1bn for UK economy'

Graduates interested in starting up their own firm may like to take note of recent research conducted by business insurer Hiscox.

The firm's study, which encompassed France, Holland and Germany as well as the US, found that British entrepreneurs are among the most dedicated.

Small business owners are worth around £1,046bn to the UK economy by clocking up more than half a billion working hours annually, the study revealed.

Hiscox found that one-third of small business owners work more than 50 hours a week and 14% put in over 60.

A newly-coined phrase, the Entrepreneurial Domestic Product, has also being adopted to address the value of the entrepreneur in several countries.

This hard work may be taking its toll on some enterprising business owners it seems, as a poll undertaken by Unicom last month found that 42% of 433 small business owners questioned said they would not risk taking a break from work this year.