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PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (27 April 2020)

Question Asked

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that (a) small retailers, (b) businesses in the agricultural and horticulture sector and (c) other eligible businesses are able to access the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme.

Asked by:
Sir John Hayes (Conservative)

Answer

The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) is open to eligible businesses operating in most sectors, including small retailers and businesses in agriculture and horticulture. Agriculture businesses may not qualify for the full interest and lender-levied fee payment paid by government.

In order to be eligible for the CBILS, businesses must:

  • be UK-based in their activity, with turnover of no more than £45 million per year;
  • have a borrowing proposal which, were it not for the current pandemic, would be considered viable by the lender; and
  • self-certify that they have been adversely impacted by the Coronavirus (Covid-19).

For more information on the scheme, businesses should visit the British Business Bank website: www.british-business-bank.co.uk/ourpartners/coronavirus-business-interruption-loan-schemes/clbils/

The Government has responded to feedback to ensure that companies feel the full benefits of available support through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) by:

  • Extending the scheme so that all viable small businesses affected by Covid-19;
  • Removing previous restrictions on the following groups to enable them to access the CBILS, subject to other eligibility criteria being met: Employer, professional, religious or political membership organisations and trade unions;
  • Removing the ability for lenders to ask for personal guarantees for loans under £250,000, and reducing the personal guarantee for loans over £250,000 to 20% of the outstanding balance after recoveries;
  • Introducing technical changes to ensure that applications will be processed faster;
  • Removing the forward-looking viability test; and
  • Removing the per lender portfolio cap.

The Government will continue to see if there are other areas for improvement across the scheme as a whole.


Answered by:
Paul Scully (Conservative)
5 May 2020

Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.