Beefed up government loan scheme brings big help for small firms

The government’s Bounce Back loan package for small businesses affected by the Covid-19 crisis is exceptionally generous.

Rishi Sunak © TOLGA AKMEN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s latest scheme is head and shoulders above the rest © Getty
(Image credit: Rishi Sunak © TOLGA AKMEN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

The government’s latest initiative for cash-strapped small businesses struggling to cope with Covid-19 pandemic went live on Monday and is likely to prove hugely popular.

The Bounce Back loans scheme, announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak, aims to help tens of thousands of small businesses struggling to secure finance from the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), which has been criticised as overly bureaucratic and too exclusive.

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David Prosser
Business Columnist

David Prosser is a regular MoneyWeek columnist, writing on small business and entrepreneurship, as well as pensions and other forms of tax-efficient savings and investments. David has been a financial journalist for almost 30 years, specialising initially in personal finance, and then in broader business coverage. He has worked for national newspaper groups including The Financial Times, The Guardian and Observer, Express Newspapers and, most recently, The Independent, where he served for more than three years as business editor.