New technology has triggered a dramatic rise in the number of people holding second jobs. 
HMRC, the revenue and customs department, reports 1.2million have official second jobs, up from 1.05 million in 2007. 
Of these, 450,000 are self-employed second jobbers doing their own work on the side – an increase of 40 per cent from 2006. 
The rise in jobs double-acts, whereby people keep their day job while also starting their own business, is also revealed in a new survey by business service company allDayPA, 
The in-depth look at the employment market found that one in five of all new businesses launched in the previous 12 months, began this way. 
Reuben Singh, chief executive officer at alldayPA, said: “The results of our survey mirror a growing trend across the board for UK workers having second jobs to boost income. 
“New technology has made this easier to achieve. People at work are able to use technologies like smart phones, with multiple email accounts or cloud hosting, to enable them to send emails and carry out basic tasks on their own account, while still doing their main job.. 
“The trend is also reflected by alldayPA’s experience. We have seen demand for call answering services from double-jobbers, with new accounts, up 32 per cent in the past year. 
“Many double job start-ups want to ensure customers are dealt with immediately, and are provided with answers to common questions, or emailed basic information. 
“Our PAs handle such tasks and pass on enquires to clients via email or text, flagging urgent requests, so clients working a day job can call back when available. 
The study also revealed most common double jobbers are men aged between 25 and 34. The most popular sectors are those that are most closely related to new technology, such as search engine marketing, and website design. Marketing, design, and HR are other popular sectors.