Oral Answers to Questions

Robert Flello Excerpts

Thursday 6th March 2014 Commons Chamber

[Michael Fallon]

I will certainly look at the point that my hon. Friend raises. I pay tribute to his efforts at the Department over two and a half years to back companies of all sizes in their export drive.

[Robert Flello (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Lab)]

2. What recent assessment he has made of the availability of finance and the level of lending by banks to small businesses.

[The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (Vince Cable)]

Gross lending to small businesses for the 12 months to January was 14% higher than in the same period a year ago, although net lending continues to contract. The Bank of England’s credit conditions survey reported, however, that:

“The overall availability of credit to the corporate sector increased significantly”

in the final quarter of 2013.

[Robert Flello]

I am really surprised by the answer that the Secretary of State has given, because small businesses in my constituency tell me that they are finding it almost impossible and often totally impossible to access the finance that they need. Lending to business is down after the failure of the Government’s Project Merlin, credit easing and funding for lending schemes. It now emerges that the business bank is just a rebadging of existing schemes. Why has the Secretary of State failed to learn from the Department’s mistakes and failures?