Electricians, plumbers, painters and decorators and other tradespeople are struggling to expand their businesses because of growing costs, the burden of bureaucracy and major hiring pressures, a new study suggests. Four out of five respondents said rising costs of materials and tools, coupled with increasingly high levels of tool theft, were preventing them to grow their business. A similar number blamed rising taxes, such as the increase in employer National Insurance Contributions. Jambu Palaniappan, chief executive of Checkatrade, said: “The UK is a nation dependent on the trade industry — from carpenters to electricians, decorators to roofers. “The 900,000 people behind it couldn’t be more important for propelling our economy, and our research shows how eager they are to contribute to the Government’s growth agenda.