Irish entrepreneurial spirit to fore

THE Irish are the most fearless in Europe when it comes to going into business for themselves but the latest figures show they are losing courage.

Almost three-quarters say fear of failing is not a good enough reason to become self-employed. This attitude has resulted in Ireland having 200,000 actual or aspiring entrepreneurs - the highest in the EU.

In countries like Germany and Austria 61% say they would not consider going into business for themselves if there was a chance it might fail. But in the past two years such fears have increased, not just in Ireland but throughout the EU generally and even in the US. In 2002, 25% of Irish feared failure, while for the EU generally the figure has gone from 45% to 50% and even in the US, it has jumped from 27% to 33%.