| East Midlands Development Agency (emda) has welcomed the latest package of measures for business launched today by Lord Mandelson. The announcement responds to many of the concerns expressed by businesses about being unable to access funding from banks because of the impact of the credit crunch. The support package builds on commitments made in November’s Pre-Budget Report (PBR) and consists of loan guarantees and a new Enterprise Fund aimed at helping companies struggling to access finance for working capital and investment.
The government measures include:
• A £10bn Working Capital Scheme, securing up to £20bn of short term bank lending to companies with a turnover of up to £500m
• A £1bn Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme, securing up to £1.3bn of bank loans to small firms with a turnover of up to £25m
• A £75m Capital for Enterprise Fund (£50m from Government augmented by £25m from the banks) to invest in small businesses which need equity
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