THE relatively high number of Peterborough businesses going bankrupt is a reflection of the city’s entrepreneurial spirit, according to its MP.

Stewart Jackson (left), MP for Peterborough, told the Evening Telegraph: “There are lots more people here who want to set up their business in the city than, say, in the north west. It’s been a tough two or three years with a recession which has made it difficult.”

The number of personal insolvencies in Peterborough went up from 2,099 in 2009 to 2,293 last year. The figures were published in a report from finance firm RSM Tenon.

Iain Crighton, chairman of Peterborough Chamber of Commerce, also saw a silver lining. Speaking to the newspaper, Mr Crichton said any redundancies, combined with the city’s entrepreneurial spirit, could see a boom in start-up business in 2011.

“Any job losses are sad and from a personal point of view it is a tragedy, but every cloud has a silver lining,” he said. “You often find people who lose their job from the public sector have wanted to set up their own business and their redundancy package can help them do that. If there are job losses in the public sector then hopefully we will see a raft of new businesses set up in the city. Hopefully the new businesses will create jobs.”