Many of our businesses in Watford are facing tough financial circumstances, and my team and I have been offering advice to many business owners about how to access Government support such as small business grants, the Job Retention Scheme, Self Employed Income Support Scheme and others.
I know that getting fast access to finance is vital for many of our businesses so I am delighted that the Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced a new loan scheme that offers a simple, quick, easy solution for those in need of smaller loans.
Small and medium-sized businesses can apply for new Bounce Back Loans between £2,000 and £50,000, or 25% of turnover, with the government paying the interest for the first 12 months.
These loans will be available from 9am next Monday.
There will be no forward-looking tests of business viability; no complex eligibility criteria; just a simple, quick, standard form for businesses to fill in.
For most firms, loans should arrive within 24 hours of approval.
And the Chancellor has decided, for this specific scheme, that the government will support lending by guaranteeing 100% of the loan
We shouldn't ask taxpayers - and our children and grandchildren - to bear all the risk of lending almost unlimited sums to businesses who may have very little prospect of paying those loans back – and not necessarily because of coronavirus. So I agree with the Chancellor that it wouldn’t be right to provide 100% guarantees on all the loan schemes. Instead, the new Bounce Back Loans carefully target that extraordinary level of state support at those who need it most.
And the £50,000 cap balances the risk to the taxpayer with the need to support our smallest businesses, like many of those in Watford.
Apply for a coronavirus Bounce Back Loan
For more information on how to access Government support schemes you can also visit my support for businesses page.
