'Blow' for Labour as 100 business chiefs praise Tories

More than 100 business leaders have collectively warned that a Labour government would "threaten jobs and deter investment" in the UK.

Baroness Brady and Ocado chairman Lord Stuart Rose were among 103 signatories to a letter, published in the Daily Telegraph, hailing Conservative economic policies.

They praised Chancellor George Osborne's decision to cut corporation tax and warned that a "change in course" would "put the recovery at risk".

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The Telegraph claims the letter is the "biggest ever endorsement by business leaders of a political party" and "marks a new low" for Miliband, who has said he would reverse the corporation tax cut if he wins the 7 May election.

In a "further blow" for Miliband, the letter was signed by at least five senior business leaders who had previously backed Labour, including former Dragons' Den star Duncan Bannatyne.

Another signatory is Peter Grauer, the chairman of Bloomberg, the corporation where Miliband unveiled his party's "business manifesto" on Monday.

The 22-page document was seen as an attempt to fight back against concerns that Labour would put the economic recovery at risk.

Today, Miliband will announce plans to effectively outlaw most zero-hour contracts, a policy that was not included in the manifesto and one that is predicted to "alarm" some employers.

Labour is expected to announce that workers on zero-hour contracts should be entitled to convert their contracts into a regular job after just three months, rather than 12 months as the party has previously suggested.

Miliband says the policy will help protect workers from exploitation, but employment law specialists have warned that it could result in more companies dismissing workers just before the full contract deadline.

The Guardian adds that the move will "alarm some employers who believe it shows Labour is resistant to a flexible labour market, something they regard as the bedrock of growth in jobs in the UK over the last two years".