Believe it or not the little girl stood second from right outside her family's old shop Ramson is a young Seema Malhotra.

The Feltham and Heston MP released the childhood photo ahead of Small Business Saturday tomorrow (December 6) to encourage people to shop locally and support small firms in their neighbourhood.

She grew up living above the general store in Thornbury Road, Osterley, which is now home to the restaurant Memories of India, with her four siblings, grandmother and parents.

Although she was too small to see over the shop counter, the then Heston Primary School pupil recalls helping her mum calculate customers' change.

"It was a family business and a real community shop, selling school uniforms and other clothes, plus jewellery, wool, thread and much more," she said.

"I remember my parents would be up late at night doing paperwork, having cooked dinner and put us to bed, before getting up early to open the shop. It's a hard life running a business, which people often forget."

Ms Malhotra spoke at Westminster Hall yesterday (Thursday, December 4), about Small Business Saturday, an American initiative which has been adopted this side of the Atlantic and which she said had given a £500 million boost to local shops last year.

She called for more to be done to support small companies, including improving access to finance and tackling antisocial behaviour so people feel safe using their local shops.

She also called for more work experience opportunities at local firms to give schoolchildren an insight into the opportunities and challenges of running your own business.

"It is so important that we support our small and independent businesses. They are a vital part of our local economy and local community and we need to get behind them. They provide that personal touch, contribute to our local character and are a source of local jobs," she said.

Brentford and Isleworth MP Mary Macleod, who is a small business ambassador for London, also encouraged people to support Small Business Saturday.

She hailed a series of measures outlined in chancellor George Osborne's Autumn Statement this week, which she said would give small business a much-needed boost.

She welcomed his promise to review the business rate system while extending the doubling of small business rate relief, keeping the two per cent cap on business rate rises and increasing by 50 cent the business rate discount for high street shops and cafes.

"I'm delighted the Chancellor is listening to small businesses and ordering a full review of business rates, as well as increased support for high streets," she said.

"The 400-year-old tax is no longer fit for purpose and it is about time we looked at it properly so small businesses can get a fairer business tax."