Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 July 2020
46. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the number of applications for loans under the credit guarantee scheme that have been rejected by lenders since 23 March 2020. [14640/20]
View answerThe Credit Guarantee Scheme was implemented under the Credit Guarantee Act 2012, which came into effect on 30th August 2012, with secondary legislation setting out the operational detail of the Scheme. The Credit Guarantee Scheme is available to Covid-19 impacted businesses. It supports loans up to €1 million for periods of up to 7 years. The Scheme offers a partial Government guarantee of 80% to banks against losses on qualifying loans to eligible SMEs. The scheme is designed to support a range of debt products appropriate to the borrowing needs of SMEs. Term loans and other products such as stocking facilities, performance bonds are covered by the Scheme.
An application to access the Credit Guarantee Scheme can be made through one of the participating finance providers which are currently Allied Irish Banks, Bank of Ireland and Ulster Bank Ireland. The Scheme is operated by SBCI. The Department plays no role in the application or decision-making process, which, is fully delegated to the participating finance providers. As such the refusal of applications is a confidential matter between the customer and the finance provider.
Information on the uptake of Covid-19 schemes is available from the Take-up of Covid-19 Supports page of my Department’s website.
