BURNLEY MP Gordon Birtwistle said businesses need more support and not just capital allowances.

Speaking during a debate in the House of Commons, Mr Birtwistle said: “I had an engineering company, and we believed that the Government should support successful engineering and manufacturing companies.

“A capital allowance of £50,000 on its own is not enough to encourage growth in the economy.

“I fully support any funding that goes into capital allowances, but we have to remember that in 2010 companies were not making much profit. They were mainly on their knees from the recession that had been created previously.

“Companies can only set their allowance against profit, so if they are not making a profit there is no allowance to claim.”