In what could be a big fillip for the print industry the measures include a £95m investment from the Regional Growth Fund that is intended to unlock up to £500m of capital expenditure amongst firms that are struggling to access finance.

The funding, which will be allocated to small business through RBS, Natwest and HSBC, is intended to support investment in capital assets by firms that have been unable to secure commercial funding and is expected to create "at least 4,000 jobs".

The Prime Minister David Cameron announced the growth package at the Exporting for Growth conference at the London Imax this morning (10 November), which brought together SMEs, banks, business advisers and trade bodies to encourage more businesses to export and ensure they have the finance they need to grow.

He said: "British SMEs are already doing incredible things, but we urgently need more of them to follow that boldness. We need this to be a country where more people think 'I can start my own business and I can sell to the world'.

"Our determination is to come through these difficult times stronger, to trade our way to growth and jobs. We need to show real optimism about the future, and we need to show real aggression about pursuing Britain's interests in the world.

"The markets are there to be tapped; the deals are there to be done, the opportunities are there to be capitalised on. Now together we must seize them."

The Prime Minister also revealed that the Red Tape Challenge would be expanded so entrepreneurs and investors can feed back where rules and regulations are getting in the way of innovation.

Other new measures include the launch of the Web Fuelled Business Initiative, which aims to get 3,500 businesses into workshops around the country to give them the know-how to exploit the global opportunities offered by the internet.

The initiative is being run by the Department for Business, which has teamed with Yell and original Dragons' Den panellist Doug Richard. There will also be a new National Export Challenge, which will get business intermediaries to provide sector knowledge and support for SMEs.

The government will also kick-start a campaign to give SMEs the tools and advice they need to access finance, including best-practice guidance and a new Finance Finder tool on the Business Link website.

Further professional export advice will be provided via the Open to Export web resource, hosted by Yell and the British Chambers of Commerce, where UK firms will also be able to swap information and experiences directly.

The government will also take the opportunity provided by next year's Olympic Games to promote British business to the many international journalists and business people who will attend London 2012 by establishing a British Business Embassy, based at Lancaster House.

Allied to the government effort, business organisations and banks have announced their own measures, including free finance, export and legal advice from the likes of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, Barclays, ICAEW, the Law Society, PWC and Intuit.

For a full list of the support measures announced today visit the BIS website.