Small business lending woes continue

Small businesses are still facing difficulties when it comes to finding finance, research has suggested.

The latest Voice of Small Business Index from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) revealed that four in ten small businesses applying for credit are refused. Meanwhile, confidence has fallen in every industry sector, other than health and motor services.

Property markets and the financial service sectors saw the largest drop in confidence, although the overall confidence level remained in positive territory at +1.3 points, down 0.9 points. Furthermore, more than 50 per cent of respondents stated that they still plan to grow their businesses over the coming year.

John Walker, national chairman at the FSB, commented: "If small firms cannot access credit it constrains their investment plans.

"We know from past research that many small businesses missed growth opportunities because they couldn't access the money they needed. There needs to be more competition in the finance and banking sector because only when there are more options to choose from will small firms get a fairer deal."

He added that there also need to be more alternative forms of credit available to businesses if the government wants to rely on small firms to help drag the country out of recession.