[Silhouette]

I've heard (don't know how true it is) that if your business fails in the UK you are not allowed to start another for a period of time.

I think you have probably heard a partial truth, perhaps related to some kind of bankruptcy procedure, and inferred too much.

It's true that there is typically more regulation of businesses in Europe than in the US, but often it relates to fields like employment rights, consumer protection, data protection, etc. The actual cost and effort required to operate a business (edit: in the sense of setting up a legal entity to use for trading purposes, filing the mandatory paperwork, and paying the associated fees/taxes) varies widely among EU nations, but with a very low lower bound.