Growing businesses left out in the cold on bank lending

3rd June 2013

British banks and building societies drew down £2.

6bn in Q1 2013 from the Funding for Lending Scheme. Net lending to businesses decreased by £300m in Q1 2013 Commenting on the latest figures on the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS), John Longworth, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said:  -Although the £300m fall in lending was a smaller drop than the previous quarter, it is a concern that lending continues to contract despite the Funding for Lending Scheme having been in place for nearly a year. It is also worrying that usage of scheme seems to have dropped significantly since the end of 2012. -The real test for Funding for Lending is whether it is able to get credit flowing to young and fast-growing businesses. Unfortunately many of these growth firms are still being left out in the cold when it comes to accessing finance, which prevents them from expanding, creating jobs and helping to drive a business-led recovery. These figures give weight to the argument for the swift delivery of a British Business Bank, which must have both the scale and the infrastructure needed to help young firms grow.