The Business Rates Supplements Bill, details of which were published to coincide with the Queen's Speech, would give councils power to raise and retain a supplement of up to 2p in the pound above the national business rate.

The levy, which would only extend to England and Wales, would be intended to promote economic development in the area, including local infrastructure projects such as Crossrail in London.

Despite the potential rise in business rates, the Queen told parliament that the government's "overriding priority" is to ensure the "stability of the British economy during the global economic downturn".

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) have both slammed the proposal, which comes at a time when many businesses, especially in the print industry, are struggling.

CBI director-general John Cridland said: "Additional funding is needed for big infrastructure projects, especially Crossrail, but now is not the time to bring in new powers to raise tax more widely from business.

"The CBI wants, at the very least, for firms to be able to vote on every proposed local business rates supplement, so firms aren't saddled with a potential £1bn annual tax increase without a proper say in the process."

BCC director-general David Frost added: "This is the first Queen's Speech during a recession for over a decade, yet there is little medicine for the economy.

"The government has today brought forward proposals which will cost businesses time by imposing new employment legislation and money by hitting them with a business rate supplement."

Printers could also face increased demands for changes to working hours, after proposals to extend current flexible working rights from parents of under-sixes to the 4.5m parents with children aged up to 16 were given the go-ahead.

This will give workers the right to ask employers to alter their contractual hours to fit with their domestic life, for example to coincide with school hours by starting earlier and leaving earlier.

The government has added a caveat that will allow companies to refuse any request that is considered likely to harm the business.

In a bid to increase lending, the government has also proposed a legally binding code of conduct for banks to ensure they maintain lending to businesses through the economic downturn and do not switch terms to either individuals or businesses.

Banks have recently been accused of reducing credit facilities for businesses, including printers.

Other key business measures made public today include:

• Banking Bill, giving the Bank of England a statutory duty to ensure financial stability and allowing the Treasury and the FSA to act faster in future to avoid another bank collapse
• Children, Skills and Learning Bill, which promises an apprenticeship place for every suitably qualified young person by 2013
• Equality Bill, which would ban secrecy clauses in work contracts that forbid workers to compare wages; the bill is an attempt to equalise men's and women's pay