Business start-ups handed £10m emergency fund

Date: 16th December 2008

Struggling small businesses have been handed a £10 million emergency fund to help them through the economic crisis.

A report in the Lancashire Evening Post states that regional firms will be given access to the Transition Loan Fund, which has been provided by the North-West Development Agency (NWDA).

Through the funding, the agency is hoping to increase the number of options available to businesses as banks continue to show reluctance in lending.

Steven Broomhead, chief executive of the NWDA, told the Lancashire Evening Post: "This fund is aimed at businesses which have a strong plan for the future but are finding it difficult to find bank support.

"We cannot allow these companies to go to the wall and that is why the agency has stepped in with this fund which we hope will make the difference for many new and existing businesses."

In other recent news, the Chartered Institute of Taxation has revealed that its member accountancy firms have been spending increasing amounts of time with their clients since the onset of the credit crunch.