To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many new businesses established in (a) Eastbourne and (b) East Sussex received Government (i) funding and (ii) assistance in each of the last five years. (151368)

Between 2004 and 2006 Sussex Enterprise (the Business Link for Sussex) provided funding and assistance to 45 new businesses in Eastbourne and 172 new businesses in East Sussex, a breakdown by year follows. In this case, new businesses are defined as those that were less than 12 months old at the time of the assistance.

Before October 2004 it is not possible for Sussex Enterprise to provide figures as a new database was adopted at that time; nor is it possible for the data to be disaggregated further without incurring disproportionate cost.

Neither Eastbourne borough council nor East Sussex county council provided direct assistance to businesses over the course of the period.

Further data on the number of businesses receiving funding or assistance from other sources are not stored centrally.