In news that has been welcomed by eBay, Chancellor Alistair Darling has this week announced new plans aimed at helping small businesses.

From October rates will be cut for 12 months, with over half a million small enterprises receiving cuts in payments.

345,000 businesses meanwhile will pay no business rates at all.

The Chancellor also plans to double the Annual Investment Allowance to £100, 000.

Credit lines will be enhanced in order to help businesses, while RBS and Lloyds have offered £94 billion of new loans.

Half of which are being made available for smaller enterprises.

And £4 billion of government help for UK companies will be administered by a new scheme, called Finance for Growth.

eBay UK's new managing director, Clare Gilmartin, welcomed the business rate cuts, saying they are an important boost, for online companies.