Red tape is strangling the high street

The government has done nothing to help small businesses to survive.

In August, an apparently successful chocolate shop in Wilmslow, Cheshire, closed down. Despite taking £4,000 a week, the owner, Simon Dunn, couldn't make ends meet. Poignantly, he posted an open letter in his window explaining to customers why he was being forced out of business.

"It is with great sadness I have had to cease trading from this wonderful shop. Why, you may wonder, as it was so busy, popular and good?"

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