It highlighted what it believed to be "worrying UK business attitudes and misunderstandings" about outsourcing.

More than 50% questioned said there was internal resistance to the idea and they had never really considered outsourcing print and related functions to a specialist firm.

But the report also found that 100% of interviewees could recognise the financial benefits that it can bring, despite only 10% currently considering the option.

The independent survey was initially commissioned through market research agency B2B International as part of an overall awareness exercise to support a marketing push to senior print industry executives.

Its aim was to establish the extent of corporate understanding of print outsourcing in the British boardroom. It involved 3,000 phone calls to 300 companies and in-depth, one-to-one interviews with more than 20 senior executives from companies in the financial, retail, travel and leisure sectors.

A spokeswoman for Alistair McIntosh said: "It was very encouraging to find that the majority of companies had considered outsourcing their print function at some point."

The White Paper is being sent out to executives nationwide, as well as human resources directors who need to be aware of issues surrounding staff transfers.

For a copy of the report, contact Victoria Lamb: 0113 213 0300.

Story by Rachel Barnes