HELP FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES

That this House welcomes the steps the Government has taken to help small and medium-sized businesses during the recession; recognises that more could be done to build on policies like the Enterprise Finance Guarantee which can help business survive the current economic climate; supports a call from Calderdale Trades Council for the establishment of credit unions for small and medium-sized businesses in Halifax and other places; urges the Government to look closely at piloting such an initiative in an area like Calderdale before rolling it out nationally; supports such a move as it would help secure jobs by providing working capital for small and medium-sized enterprises; further recognises that in the long-term such unions would aim to establish a new financial instrument as they would act as a local merchant bank based on membership and collaborative ownership; further recognises that such a local fund would provide the necessary liquidity for local small employers which are currently being treated harshly by the banks; and calls on the Government to implement this idea to link in with its existing support for businesses.