Women are “half as likely” as men to launch their own business, the government has said.
New figures published on Friday also show only one in five small firms are led by women, who also make up only a third of all entrepreneurs across the UK.
Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury Robert Jenrick said women looking to start and grow a business may be facing “unfair obstacles” not experienced by their male counterparts.
Launching a review, Mr Jenrick pledged to break down barriers as the government suggested the imbalance between men and women had created an “untapped" pool of talent.
Alison Rose, chief executive of RBS Commercial and Private Banking, has been appointed to lead the government review to try and establish the extent of the barriers faced by female entrepreneurs.
The businesswoman said she wants to strengthen the UK’s position as “one of the best places in the world to start and grow a business, then no-one can be left behind”.
She added: “Unfortunately, statistics show that women make up only a third of all entrepreneurs in the UK. To better drive the UK’s economy, we need to understand, and tackle, the barriers and reasons as to why this is, more can be done to support women in enterprise.”
Women only make up 27 per cent of chief executives and senior officials working full-time, the BBC reports.
The review launched on Friday will look at ways to help women start and grow a business by considering the drivers of the disparity in male and female entrepreneurship.
Mr Jenrick added: “The fact that Britain is home to so many new, innovative businesses is something to be proud of. But the fact that so few of them are started by women is shocking.
“This is not because of lack of talent or appetite. It’s vital that we identify the barriers that are hampering entrepreneurial women from securing the backing that businessmen have taken for granted.
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“Alison’s vast experience in investment banking will be invaluable to helping us level the playing field and empower even more talent in our economy.”
