A UK think tank is calling on government to remove the 45p top rate of income tax and reduce capital gains tax in order to give a boost to the UK’s stock of billionaire business people.

The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) said its research revealed a strong link between tax rates, low-levels of red tape and the presence of more super wealthy people.

The UK produced 22 billionaire entrepreneurs between 1996 and 2010, equalling one billionaire in every two million people. But during the same timeframe the US created three billionaires for every 1.5 million people.

It is argued that creating more wealthy people at the top of society helps to foster innovation and employment that boosts average households.

"Individuals such as Richard Branson, Philip Green and James Dyson are typical of the entrepreneurial spirit – building their fortunes on that combination of innovation and creative destruction that is still flourishing in Britain today," reads the report.

"Cutting Capital Gains would be a straightforward way to promote growth. It would make entrepreneurship a more appealing choice for potential entrepreneurs, and would also increase the flow of funds into venture capital and entrepreneurial sectors.”