East Anglia has trumped the national average and recorded a 13.4pc rise in new businesses over the last parliamentary term, according to research.

Parliamentary constituencies stretching across Norfolk, Suffolk and East Cambridgeshire now boast 51,145 companies compared to 45,092 in 2010 when the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats came to power, a study by Inform Direct has found.

Simon Wright's Norwich South constituency emerged as a hotbed for new firms with 2,773 start-ups created over the period – the only area in East Anglia to make it into the top half of the survey covering 650 constituencies across the UK.

But the Liberal Democrat's term at Westminster also saw one of the highest number of business closures in the east, reaching 2,316.

Meanwhile, in Norwich North, Conservative candidate Chloe Smith saw a 28pc increase to 2,754 in the total number of recorded companies, the largest rise in the region.

It comes as the research revealed that Labour leader Ed Miliband's constituency had one of the lowest levels for start-up business at 1,861 – ranking Doncaster North 645th out of 650 constituencies.

But business experts have questioned to what extent candidates can claim the credit – or take the blame – for the local economic performance.

Kevin Horne, chief executive of Norfolk and Waveney Enterprise Services (NWES), said the general tone of a government and the foresight of local authorities can make a difference to a business' prospects, while the efforts of individual MPs have less impact. 'The government of the time sets the tone for being business-friendly, which means people have confidence,' he said.

'Of course there are individuals that go over and above, but that ranks below the influence of central government and the local authorities.

'Norwich City Council has been a great supporter of NWES and local enterprise, and that's a Labour-majority council,' Mr Horne added.

Across the UK, the number of recorded businesses rose 12pc from 6,593,352 to 7,177,130 under the current government.

Yet although East Anglia may have beaten the national average for a rise in the number of recorded companies, the figures suggest that Norfolk still has more work to do when it comes to matching the start-up growth of constituencies elsewhere.

While the average of start-ups created across the UK reached 2,874, Norfolk managed a figure of 1,602.

John Korchak, director of operations at Ipswich-based company record management service Inform Direct, said: 'At first the lower number of businesses being created could suggest that Norfolk is quite sleepy, and there's not enough economic activity, but actually, if you look at the 1,171 that are dissolved in Norfolk, that is below the national average of 2,471.

'So it seems that Norfolk is not flashy, but that companies are being formed for the right reasons and are surviving.'

The results appeared to show that across the UK more companies were formed in Conservative-held constituencies. However, the weaker economic performances in Labour constituencies could be a symptom of a north-south economic divide, with Labour holding the balance of power in northern areas which are less economically developed than constituencies in the south of the country, Mr Korchak added.