Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps is he taking to ensure that customers of all banks are able to access loans from the Coronavirus Bounce Back Loan scheme.

The Government’s Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), launched 4 May, was designed to help the smallest businesses access loans up to £50,000.

As of June 7, over 782,000 loan facilities have been approved with a value of over £23.7bn. There are so far 21 accredited lenders offering finance under the scheme, and this number continues to grow. The British Business Bank who are responsible for administrating the scheme, have put substantial resources into onboarding new lenders as quickly as possible.

If an SME’s main lender does not offer Bounce Back Loans, businesses can go to another accredited lender. Several accredited lenders are accepting applications from new customers.