Covid-19: Businesses and the Private Sector

Lord Bilimoria Excerpts

Thursday 21st May 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bilimoria (CB)]

In this crisis, what has worked is not the Government working on their own but collaboration between them and the private sector. The first Nightingale Hospital, which the noble Lord, Lord Dobbs, spoke about—4,000 beds put up in nine days—happened because the Army, the Gurkhas, the NHS, the University of East London and the private sector all worked to put it together. On vaccines, we have seen Oxford, other universities and industry working with the Government and all coming together. Testing was not working when it was just in the hands of PHE; now it is because there is a collaborative effort between laboratories, research institutes, the Cambridge Biomedical Campus and, for example, AstraZeneca and GSK, all working together.

The CBI, where I am a vice-president, has a business heroes campaign, which urges organisations to join a nationwide effort and share examples of best practice. The CBI is helping to co-ordinate the efforts of companies and stepping forward to provide assistance where possible, from providing computers for pupils to PPE for healthcare and care workers. At the University of Birmingham, where I am chancellor, academics from across the business school are working with business intermediaries, such as the CBI, to reskill people for future working needs on working health and well-being.

As business, we are very grateful for all the help the Chancellor and the Government have given us, but the hospitality sector, which my business is in, is suffering greatly. It has basically been shut for two months and will take a long time to recover, especially if social distancing measures are meant to be in place. Through the Government’s CBILS loans, launched two months ago, 40,000 businesses have been given just over £7 billion. I have been urging the Government to give 100% guaranteed loans for business, and they listened and have done that. In just over two weeks, the bounce-back loan scheme is up to £50,000, and 464,393 companies have received £14 billion. This has worked.

With all the challenges ahead in this recession—as spoken about by the noble Lord, Lord Dobbs—I request that the Government raise the limit for the 100% government-guaranteed loan scheme to £500,000, because business will need this support. We, as a nation, are historically renowned for our creativity, business skills and entrepreneurship. That is what will get us through this crisis.