* Says confident cap will become more flexible for business
* Limit has created visa shortage for international firms
By Tim Castle
LIVERPOOL, England, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Britain is working on ways to modify a new cap on immigration which employers say is causing problems for companies needing to relocate skilled staff, Business Secretary Vince Cable said on Monday.
Cable told Reuters he was confident the system would become more responsive to the requirements of business following a consultation on how it was working.
"What I am confident about is that when the temporary system is reviewed and the consultation has been completed, we will be able to have a more flexible system that will reflect the needs of business, and we are working in a positive spirit to make sure that happens."
Cable has been outspoken in his criticism of the migrant limit, saying it is costing Britain thousands of jobs and damaging its recovery as companies threaten to relocate abroad because they cannot get visas for their staff.
The CBI employers' group has condemned the interim cap as a blunt instrument that was sending the wrong message about Britain being a good place to do business.
The issue has caused tension within the ruling coalition of Conservatives and Cable's smaller Liberal Democrat party.
The cap was a key Conservative election pledge, which the Liberal Democrats reluctantly agreed to in a coalition deal in May.
The cap limits the number of skilled workers with a job offer allowed into Britain. It is a temporary measure introduced in June ahead of a permanent ceiling on migrants from outside the European Union to be set in April 2011.
Critics say the cap is based on artificially low staffing needs last year when the economy was mired in recession.
Cable, attending a Liberal Democrat conference in Liverpool, said that while he subscribed to the coalition's immigration policy, his intervention meant that the problems caused by the temporary cap were now clearly understood.
"I was pointing out some of the practical difficulties which have been subsequently reinforced by the commentaries of all the business federations and many individual companies," he said.
"We are now working with the Home Office (interior ministry), hopefully we will be able to produce an outcome at the end of this which involves more flexibility and a better understanding of Britain's need to be open for business."