A MAJOR new study has been launched to examine the effectiveness of business support across this region.

Consultancy firm DTZ Pieda has been commissioned by the South West Regional Development Agency and the Small Business Service to carry out the work.

Experts will look at provision, the intermediaries that support businesses and the agencies which fund the activities they undertake.

South West RDA business support and investment manager Steve Richards said: "This is a large and important piece of work.

"It will update previous research and act as a benchmark to determine the progress being made in providing the right measure of support for businesses in the South West."

SBS director for the South West Brian McCarthy said: "This study will offer vital information to shape how Business Links and other providers of business support in the South West operate.

DTZ Pieda is expected to report on its findings in the autumn.

l South West RDA chairman Juliet Williams visited Brussels yesterday to meet with Michel Barnier, European Commissioner for Regional Policy.

They discussed the future of European funding for the region after the enlargement of the European Union.

The meeting, which involved all RDA chairmen, was suggested to Michel Barnier when he came to a conference in the South West last September.