A new government-backed company will aim to encourage college graduates to tap into their entrepreneurial instincts.

The National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship is an independent company which will aim to find good entrepreneurial ideas from graduates and help get them off the ground.

The company, launched by Chancellor Gordon Brown, was set up jointly by the Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Trade and Industry, with funding of £700,000.

The body's chief executive is Ian Robertson, a former computer science lecturer in computer science who has also launched several successful businesses in the UK and abroad.

The National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship will carry out research into the blocks that stop graduates from setting up businesses.

It will also run courses to teach students the skills they need to get a business established.