The UK ranks above its rivals in Europe for entrepreneurial activity, beating France, Italy and Germany in the self-employment stakes, according to the latest research.

Private bank Societe Generale said 7.1% of the UK working age population was involved in entrepreneurial activity in 2013, compared to 5.2% in Spain, 5% in Germany and just 4.6% in France.

The figures covered 2013, but also revealed that in 2012 the UK reported its highest level of entrepreneurial activity in more than 10 years, with 9% of the working age population involved.

The UK also leads the pack on female entrepreneurship with the proportion of working-age women increasing from 3.6% in 2007 to 5.5% in 2013.

In Italy and Spain female entrepreneurship dropped by a third and a quarter respectively during that timeframe.

Christine Ross at Societe Generale said: “It is a fantastic achievement for the UK to rank number one for entrepreneurship and it is really positive that the proportion of females engaged in entrepreneurial activity is continuing to increase.

“There is definitely still ground to be won, but hopefully the next generation of female entrepreneurs will continue to gain inspiration from the growing number of women who have built their own businesses.”