You’ll be hearing a great deal about chancellor Alastair Darling’s first Budget speech this week. And no doubt you’re on tenterhooks, eager to hear how influenced he’s been by calls to delay or amend the implementation of capital gains tax reforms and the introduction of a tax on non-doms.

Something that caught my eye today, however, is how crucial Darling’s speech could be for early-stage and ambitious companies seeking finance to grow. It’s not an entirely new concern of course, and it’s strongly linked to capital gains tax relief, but it reminded me of last week’s First Tuesday event at the Hospital Club in London’s Covent Garden.

Essentially, David Blair, the CEO of accountancy practice DBA Group in Cambridge, has noted that the £1m ceiling on capital gains tax relief is discouraging angel investment at a time when access to venture capital is limited.

"Young companies are already feeling the squeeze as venture capitalists turn their attention elsewhere and the burden of investment falls onto business angels,” Blair said, who added that serial entrepreneurs or investors will seek to place their money elsewhere once they’ve reached the £1m cap on entitlement to the so-called Entrepreneurs’ Relief or if they feel their portfolio is already likely to take them up to or beyond the allocation.

All this makes the words of the speakers at First Tuesday more prescient. Titled ‘The Perfect Investment Proposal’, experienced angel investor and director of Business Plan Services Michael Anderson offered some plain and simple, but undeniably useful advice on how to create a plan that makes investors sit up and take notice.

Spoon feed the audience, he said. Start at the end with the vision, not the beginning and paint a picture of what the business will look like. In no more than 30 seconds articulate the value proposition. Forget about the product and service you’re offering for a minute and hone in on the market.

Don’t tell an investor that the beauty of the proposition is there’s no competition out there and that you’re first to market. “I have never come across a business that has no competition,” he said. Instead, identify and establish the differences between you and what’s out there.

Remember that investors invest in people. Don’t include your CVs or biogs in the appendix, Anderson warned. “It’s not sufficient.” Tell them where you have gaps in knowledge as this could be the solution to getting the calibre of experience on board that you can’t afford.

Too often, he added, the only connection between words and figures in the plan is a staple. “Get the words right or the numbers are irrelevant. Do research that is borne out by the facts. Talk to customers and potential customers.”

And don’t skimp on attention to detail. There’s no excuse for poor grammar and typos. Finally, entertain and enlighten. “It amazes me how entrepreneurs with real passion manage to write the dullest business plans.”

As Liz Carrington, a director of London Business Angels said (also at First Tuesday), there are 20,000 business angels in the UK and £1bn going into businesses here each year. Even if these figures were to fall as a result of Darling fiddling with tax regimes the opportunity is there – but you’ll have to be sharp to get a share.