Alistair Darling has summoned his antagonists from Britain’s business lobby to the Treasury today to hear their complaints over his reforms to capital gains tax.

Richard Lambert, Director-General of the CBI, will lead a delegation from the four main business groups that have vented their anger at the proposed changes.

Last week the CBI, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), the Federation of Small Businesses and the Institute of Directors wrote a joint letter protesting that many of their members were facing an 80 per cent increase in their tax bills.

They argued that the reforms, which Mr Darling announced in his Pre-Budget Report two weeks ago, would discourage small companies and venture capital funds from “investing for the long game”.

However, Mr Darling has issued an unequivocal rebuttal of their arguments. He told MPs last week that having a single rate of capital gains tax was “the right thing to do”.

Last week the Treasury’s top officials admitted to the Commons Treasury Committee that business had not been consulted over the plans, although they claimed that there had been “a debate in the country” over taper relief, which enables long-term holders of assets to pay low tax on capital gains.

Nick Dines, a BCC spokesman, said that the group would raise the issue of a new “lack of trust between government and business . . . No one was told about this. We saw Mr Darling a week before the PreBudget Report and it wasn’t mentioned at all.”

Trade unionists urged Mr Darling to stick to his guns. Brendan Barber, the TUC General Secretary, said yesterday that the proposals would simplify a highly complex regime and tackle public concern over the low tax rate paid by private equity partners.

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