Union leader Sir Ken Jackson, general secretary of the AEEU, has called on the government to curb new taxation on businesses, especially the climate change levy and the plans for double taxation on multinationals.

Sir Ken said that unions were not against business taxation but questioned whether businesses should be further hit when they were already under severe pressure from the strength of sterling. He said that fairer treatment was needed for businesses.

The union leader also said that the chancellor, Gordon Brown, should think twice about asking businesses to increase productivity. He cited Nissan and Toyota as the most productive car companies in the world, but said that both companies found it difficult to make money in the UK.

Sir Ken called on the government to make billions of pounds from the Treasury’s cash pile available to be invested in enterprise initiatives and incentives for businesses.