Jack Semple, Secretary of EAMA reports that the government has revived the Recovery Loan Scheme (RLS), which will continue for another two years with some changed conditions.
The RLS, which succeeded the better-known CBILS scheme, formally ended at the end of June. Business groups, including EAMA (of which MTA is a member), had urged that it be continued until a new, longer-term replacement could be found, centred on supporting business investment. It was hoped that a new scheme could be announced in the Budget this autumn but the current political uncertainty makes that less likely.
The extension is low-key, before the summer parliamentary recess last week, and some details are yet to be finalised. The main change is that lenders may now require a personal guarantee from the borrower, in line with standard commercial practice. The government states that this change recognises “that businesses and the UK more generally are now in a better position than they were during the pandemic”. It is understood that the scheme is unlikely to be available in Northern Ireland, due to EU regulation.
As before, government will underwrite 70% of lender liabilities, at the individual borrower level, in return for a lender fee. It is not clear if all the major banks will participate in the newly extended scheme.
The main RLS website appears not yet to have been updated but the extension is announced here: