Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has had discussions with the British Business Bank on eligibility of the Enable Build programme; and whether its origination criteria that a substantial majority of the portfolio must relate to developments in England applies to the (a) lenders or (b) home builders portfolio.

The ENABLE Build scheme is open to banks and non-bank lenders for the purpose of lending to small and medium-sized housebuilders across the United Kingdom, including those based in Scotland.

ENABLE Build is a ‘portfolio product’ where a guarantee is provided to a lender that covers a portfolio of eligible loans to SME borrowers.

The origination criteria under the scheme stipulates that at least 80% of the lender’s guaranteed portfolio should relate to developments in England.

This does not apply to the borrower’s portfolio, meaning that home builders based in Scotland can benefit from the scheme even if their operations and development are entirely Scotland-based.