The government has revealed plans to reduce the amount of regulation that it believes is 'stifling' small businesses, and announced a review of all planned business legislation.

Business secretary Vince Cable said that government's most important job was to "get out of the way" of business and pledged to set up a 'Reducing Regulation Committee' (RRC) to review all regulation currently planned for the business sector.

However, it is not immediately clear whether the review will cover all legislation passed by the previous government, such as the tobacco display ban, or will only apply to proposals that have not yet gone through the parliamentary process. The ACS has written to the government, asking it to clarify the matter.

The RRC will also introduce the 'one-in, one-out' approach to regulation promised in the coalition's agenda, which will ensure any new regulatory burdens on business are brought in only when reductions can be made to existing rules.

Cable said: "The deluge of new regulations has been choking enterprise for too long. We must move away from the view that the only way to solve problems is to regulate."