Sue Brownson has twice the problem of inspector visits that other companies face. As managing director of Blue Bell, a BMW dealer group with six outlets in the north of England, she has to be checked by both local council inspectors and those of the German carmaker whose vehicles she sells.

Duplication is rife among the dozen or so inspectors who come to check the Blue Bell group's health and safety procedures, audit the petroleum usage and assess the wages, tax and value added tax payments each year.