The Chancellor may have meant well with his Summer Budget, what with his surprise gift in the form of phased cuts in corporation tax that will delight big businesses in particular, and a nod to social equity in the form of setting a higher 'living wage', but there is no doubt that growing businesses face an increasing burden of red tape as a result.

Rather than simplifying compliance procedures, life is set to become more complicated for business owners as they take on board these changes from a budget packed with new taxes and responsibilities.

The first, not particularly conservative, Conservative budget for almost 20 years is set to raise a lot of tax without actually increasing the main tax rates. For the record, the independent office for Budget Responsibility identified £47 billion of tax increases in a typical post-election tax raising Budget.

The Budget has triggered reductions in corporation tax, from 20 per cent to 19 per cent in 2017, and 18 per cent by 2020, which could have lesser impact on small businesses where financial advantage will be challenged by the costs of higher wages and training. However, these reductions will cement the UK as one of the lowest corporate tax regimes and may attract business to the UK, bringing rates in line with Switzerland at 18 per cent although Ireland remains more competitive at 12.5 per cent.

Mr Osborne's introduction of a higher minimum wage for the over-25s appears to be part of a strategy to transform the country into a higher pay, lower tax, lower benefit society. However, the new "national living wage" shocked business lobby groups and whether or not it will fuel economic development remains to be seen. Retail, agriculture and hospitality businesses will be particularly affected, and will only be able to sustain a higher wage bill through business growth and innovation. Many believe this could push wage inflation up and ultimately could bring higher interest rates earlier than forecast.

The Office for Budget Responsibility predicts one million new jobs will be created over the next five years. Mr Osborne says he wants to create two million jobs and that those who can work, should work. The ability of the UK economy to create new jobs has been one of the success stories of the past five years and therefore it is to be hoped that the enhanced Employment Allowance and other measures to incentivise businesses to increase jobs will deliver.

The CBI believes the Chancellor is taking a big gamble that the labour market can absorb year-on-year increases of an average of six per cent. Skills development is going to be crucial in delivering future economic growth and increasing productivity, and the devil will be in the detail of the Chancellor's proposals for an apprenticeship levy on large firms.

Scotland's mid-sized businesses will welcome the freezing of the annual investment allowance at £200,000 which provides business with a 100 per cent tax write down for capital expenditure, encouraging investment. On the downside, business owners used to extracting a dividend rather than taking a salary out of their company are likely to be worse off as their income, in the form of dividends in excess of £5000, will now be subject to tax at higher rates, aligning them broadly with that of salary arrangements. This change will also affect private investors with significant investment portfolios. The shift in dividend policy is a major change, raising over £3bn, and may well be one of those policies which has many unintended consequences.

Scotland's burgeoning renewable energy sector will be particularly hard hit following the end of a subsidy scheme which saw renewable power generators exempt from the Climate Change Levy. The Chancellor's announcement will have a serious impact on earnings across the sector and is likely to have an immediate effect on renewable investment decisions. Although the aim was to put an end UK tax payers' money benefitting electricity generation abroad, there is concern that the UK energy generators will be the biggest losers as a result of the retrospective change in regime.

There were some Conservative measures in the Budget also with the extension of the basic rate income tax band and also the increase in the inheritance tax threshold, both election manifesto commitments, being confirmed.

This Budget will be remembered principally for the living wage commitment. However, in the first Budget in which Osborne was free from the shackles of the Liberal coalition of the last five years, it may well be remembered, not least by the right wing of his own party, at its attempt to redefine the political and economic centre ground - bold moves indeed from a bold chancellor.

- Mark Houston is managing partner of Johnston Carmichael's Glasgow office.