Research carried out with more than 7,000 adults indicates that 44% of UK respondents have a strong desire to set up their own ventures. To put this in context, 56% of German respondents and 30% of those who live in France said the same.

The paper shed light on how these people would finance their ventures. Half (50%) of aspiring UK entrepreneurs would use their own savings to set up a business. Meanwhile only a fifth of people who are interested in starting a business in the UK said they’d take out a bank loan to finance their venture. Just 22% of UK entrepreneurial hopefuls are confident that UK banks would provide them with the necessary funding.

George Osborne recently said that the country’s economy will expand 2.4% this year. However only 29% of respondents in the poll (in contrast with 57% in Germany) said that the UK’s economic situation would help them establish a business.

Despite this, UK respondents were more optimistic about the growth prospects of their respective sectors. Two fifths (40%) admitted that trading prospects in their own industries would act as “an advantage” if they chose to set up their own company.

Meanwhile, 45% of UK adults polled said that improving lifestyle conditions and emerging consumer spending habits would put them at an advantage if they chose to start their own firm.