Comparing VAT registration data with Scottish Clearing Bank Statistics on new start-up activity we assess the extent to which VAT registration data reflect the general level of start-up activity in the Scottish economy for the period 2002–2009. Findings reveal that VAT registration data underestimate the general level of start-up activity by 39%. The data also reveal there is considerable spatial variation in start-up activity across Scottish regions and the recent recession has affected start-up activity irrespective of which measure is used. It is also clear, however, that the recession has affected the general level of start-up activity to a far greater extent.
AcsZJMuellerP (2008) Employment effects of business dynamics: Mice, gazelles and elephants. Small Business Economics30(1): 85–100.
2.
AhmedAMcQuaidR (2005) Entrepreneurship, management, and sustainable development. World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management, and Sustainable Development1(1): 6–30.
3.
Andersson M and Koster S (2009) Sources of persistence in regional start-up rates: Evidence from Sweden. CESIS Electronic Working Paper Series No. 177. Available at: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:cesisp:0177&r=ent (accessed 2 January 2012).
4.
ArmingtonCAcsZ (2002) The determinants of regional variation in new firm formation. Regional Studies36(1): 33–45.
5.
ArvanitisS (1997) The impact of firm size on innovative activity: An empirical analysis based on Swiss firm data. Small Business Economics9(6): 473–490.
6.
AshcroftBLoveJHMalloyE (1991) New firm formation in the British counties with special reference to Scotland. Regional Studies25(5): 395–409.
7.
AudretschDFritschM (1994) The geography of firm births in Germany. Regional Studies28(4): 359–365.
8.
AudretschDKeilbackM (2004) Entrepreneurship capital and economic performance. Regional Studies38(8): 949–960.
9.
BaldwinJR (1998) Were small producers the engines of growth in the Canadian manufacturing sector in the 1980s?Small Business Economics10(4): 349–364.
10.
BallJ (2007) New firm formation: Is VAT registration data an accurate indicator?Local Economy22(3): 279–292.
11.
Baptista R, Escaria V and Madruga P (2007) Entrepreneurship, regional development and job creation: The case of Portugal. Max Planck Institute of Economics, Papers on Entrepreneurship, Growth and Public Policy No. 2005-06. Available at: http://ideas.repec.org/p/esi/egpdis/2005-06.html (accessed 3 January 2012).
12.
Birch DL (1981) Who creates jobs? Public Interest 65(Fall): 3–14.
13.
BothamRGravesA (2011) Regional variations in new firm job creation: The contribution of high growth start-ups. Local Economy26(2): 95–107.
14.
Brouwer P, de Kok J and Fris J (2005) Can firm age account for productivity differences? EIM SCALES-paper, N200421, Zoetermeer, Netherlands. Available at: http://www.ondernemerschap.nl/pdf-ez/N200421.pdf (accessed 2 January 2012).
15.
BrownRMasonC(forthcoming) The evolution of enterprise policy in Scotland. In: BlackburnRSchaperM (eds). Government, SMEs and Entrepreneurship Development: Policy, Practice and Challenges. Farnham: Gower.
16.
BruceDDeskinsJHillB (2009) (Small) business activity and state economic growth: Does size matter?Regional Studies43(2): 229–245.
CarreeMA (2002) Industrial restructuring and economic growth. Small Business Economics18(4): 243–255.
19.
CarreeMAThurikAR (2008) The lag structure of the impact of business ownership on economic performance in OECD countries. Small Business Economics30(1): 101–110.
20.
CastanyLLopez-BazoEMorenoR (2005) Differences in total factor productivity across firm size. A distribution analysis. University of Barcelona Working Article.
21.
ChengSLiH (2011) Spatially varying relationships of new firm formation in the United States. Regional Studies45(6): 773–789.
22.
CrossanK (2010) The Theory of the Firm and Corporate Governance. Lambert Academic Publishing.
23.
DerbyshireJHaywoodG (2009) Uncovering creative destruction brought about by new firm formation: A new method and data source. Local Economy24(4): 310–322.
24.
DisneyRHaskelJHedenY (2003) Restructuring and productivity growth in UK manufacturing. Economic Journal113(489): 666–694.
FosterLHaltiwangerJKrizanCJ (2006) Market selection, reallocation, and restructuring in the US retail trade sector in the 1990s. Review of Economics and Statistics88(4): 748–758.
27.
FritschMMuellerP (2007) The persistence of regional new business formation-activity over time: Assessing the potential of policy promotion programs. Journal of Evolutionary Economics17(3): 299–315.
28.
GarofoliG (1994) New firm formation and regional development: The Italian case. Regional Studies28(4): 381–393.
29.
GleaveWMitraJ (2010) The spatial determinants of entrepreneurship in the regions of England, 2000–2004. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business9(2): 143–161.
30.
Griffiths NE (1986) New firm formation and business development: A study of new independent firms in Wales. MPhil thesis, Polytechnic of Wales.
31.
HebertRLinkA (1989) In search of the meaning of entrepreneurship. Small Business Economics1(1): 39–49.
32.
HuergoEJaumandreuJ (2004) How does probability of innovation change with firm age?Small Business Economics22(3–4): 193–207.
33.
JensenJBMcGuckinRHStirohKJ (2001) The impact of vintage and survival on productivity: Evidence from cohorts of US manufacturing plants. Review of Economics and Statistics83(2): 323–332.
34.
JohnsonPConwayC (1997) How good are the UK VAT registration data at measuring firm births?Small Business Economics9(5): 403–409.
35.
KeebleD (1990) Small firms, new firms and uneven regional development in the United Kingdom. Area22(3): 234–245.
36.
KeebleDWalkerS (1994) New firms, small firms and dead firms: Spatial patterns and determinants in the United Kingdom. Regional Studies28(4): 411–427.
37.
KeenMSmithS (2007) VAT fraud and evasion: What do we know and what can be done? IMF working article. Washington, DC: IMF.
38.
KirznerI (1979) Perception, Opportunity, and Profit. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
39.
KnightF (1921) Risk Uncertainty and Profit. New York: Houghton Mifflin.
40.
LeeSFloridaRAcsZJ (2004) Creativity and entrepreneurship: A regional analysis of new firm formation. Regional Studies38(8): 879–891.
LoveJH (1995) The measurement of entry rates: Reconsideration and resolution. Empirica22(2): 151–157.
43.
LoveJHAshcroftB (1999) Market versus corporate structure in plant-level innovation performance. Small Business Economics13(2): 97–109.
44.
Malchow-MollerNSchjerningBSorensenA (2011) Entrepreneurship, job creation and wage growth. Small Business Economics36(1): 15–32.
45.
MasonCM(1992) New firm formation and growth. In: TownroePMartinR (eds). Regional Development in the 1990s: The British Isles in Transition. London: Jessica Kingsley Publications and the Regional Studies Association. 150–160.
46.
MuellerPvan StelAStoreyDJ (2008) The effects of new firm formation on regional development over time: The case of Great Britain. Small Business Economics30(1): 59–71.
47.
NguyenSVLeeSH (2002) Returns to scale in small and large US manufacturing establishments: Further evidence. Small Business Economics19(1): 41–50.
48.
OECD (2008) Defining Entrepreneurial Activity: Definitions Supporting Frameworks for Data Collection. Paris: OECD.
49.
OECD (2009) Turin Round Table on the impact of the global crisis on SME & entrepreneurship financing and policy responses. Issues paper. Turin, Italy, 26–27 March. Available at: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/37/4/42514259.pdf (accessed 3 January 2012).
RobbinsDKPantuoscoLJParkerDF (2000) An empirical assessment of the contribution of small business employment to US State economic performance. Small Business Economics15(4): 293–302.
53.
RodriguezACMolinaMAPerezALG (2003) Size, age and activity sector on the growth of the small and medium firm size. Small Business Economics2(3): 289–307.
54.
SchumpeterJ (1934) The Theory of Economic Development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
ValliereDPetersonR (2009) Entrepreneurship and economic growth: Evidence from emerging and developed countries. Entrepreneurship and Regional Development21(5&6): 459–480.
65.
van PraagCMVerslootPH (2007) What is the value of entrepreneurship? A review of recent research. Small Business Economics29(4): 351–382.
66.
van StelASuddleK (2008) The impact of new firm formation on regional development in the Netherlands. Small Business Economics30(1): 31–47.
67.
WestheadPMoyesT (1992) Reflections on Thatcher’s Britain: Evidence from new production firm registration 1980–88. Entrepreneurship and Regional Development4(1): 21–56.
68.
YangCHHuangCH (2005) R&D, size and firm growth in Taiwan’s electronics industry. Small Business Economics25(5): 477–487.
