Excessive red tape continues to hamper the growth of small businesses in Sussex, accountants have warned.

New Government moves to help small and medium enterprises cope with employment regulations were a step in the right direction but much more help was needed.

Tony Bennewith, president of the South Eastern Society of Chartered Accountants (Sesca), said: "While Government measures to help small business tackle employment regulation are welcome, there is still a need to reduce the overall regulatory burden."

He was commenting on employment relations minister Alan Johnson's response to the Better Regulation Task Force's report on employment regulation.

Mr Bennewith said: "Our small business clients continue to complain about the damaging affects of excessive red tape, which imposes increasingly heavy costs on firms.

"Regulations must be limited to what is really required and be implemented sensitively."

Sesca wants the Government to introduce higher statutory hurdles for new regulation, provide greater parliamentary scrutiny and apply a consistent approach to exemptions for smaller firms.

It said such an approach would foster a better, more effective regulatory climate, enhancing the prospects for wealth and job creation.

Among the measures announced by Mr Johnson were pilot schemes offering free or subsidised employment law advice visits to firms with fewer than 50 employees and a shared human resources service for small business.

He also proposed consultation on how harmonising start dates for domestic regulations could best work in practice.