Oral Answers to Questions

Seema Malhotra Excerpts

Monday 4th May 2020 Commons Chamber

[Miss Sarah Dines (Derbyshire Dales) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that all firms requiring assistance are able to access the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme.

[Seema Malhotra (Feltham and Heston) (Lab/Co-op)]

What estimate his Department has made of the number of social enterprises that have received coronavirus business interruption loans.

[Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that all firms requiring assistance are able to access the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme.

--- Later in debate ---

[Alok Sharma]

I thank my hon. Friend for that question. I can tell her that my Department is working very closely with the financial sector to ensure that businesses across the whole UK, including in Derbyshire Dales, are getting the support they need. As a result of the schemes we have announced, through the British Business Bank, businesses can now access Government-backed loans worth anywhere from £2,000 up to £50 million.

[Seema Malhotra [V]]

It is estimated that 50% of social enterprises could run out of cash by June without further support, raising concerns that the CBIL scheme is not working for social enterprises. Some of those will be in aviation, which is coming under huge strain. The UK aviation industry could lose around £21 billion-worth of revenue, putting at risk over 600,000 jobs, with 12,000 job cuts likely at British Airways alone, which will hit Feltham and Heston and the surrounding constituencies very hard. When will the Secretary of State bring forward specific support packages for the sectors that are worst hit by covid-19, such as aviation?

[Alok Sharma]

The hon. Lady’s question was in two parts. The first related to social enterprises. CBILS is open to all social enterprises, so long as they make at least 50% of their income from trading, which we believe covers the majority of social enterprises. She raised a wider question about larger companies. As she knows, we have a range of schemes in place, with the bounce-back loan scheme at one end and the corporate finance facility at the other. Where an individual business is not able to access any of those particular schemes, they can come to us, and we will consider the case that they make.