The insolvency service has reported a 6.5% increase in the number of insolvencies on the same period last year. It is also an increase of 0.1% on the previous quarter. The total figure - 4242 - includes 1203 compulsory liquidations and 3039 creditors' voluntary liquidations.

At the same time there is a reported 11% drop in individual insolvencies with 30219 during the three months to September 2011.

The insolvency figures translate to one in 138 businesses going bust which makes for alarming reading.