Sir Oliver Heald, MP for North-East Hertfordshire, has welcomed the new independent British Business Bank. As part of the Government’s Industrial Strategy, it has been given independence from the Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills, and represents an important development in providing finance to small and medium-sized businesses.

Before being given its new independence, the Bank was run from within the Department and, in the 12 months to June 2014, helped provide £829m of lending and investment to small UK firms, taking the total number of companies helped by the Bank to over 35,000. It builds on previous government schemes of supporting venture capital and promoting lending diversity. 

Commenting, Sir Oliver said, “I am very happy to support the new independence for the British Business Bank. High levels of investment are a powerful way to grow our economy and strengthen our position globally, and with nearly a billion pounds put into businesses last year, the British Business Bank is becoming ever more successful. The fact that the Dutch Parliament has recently voted to create its own institution based on our model is testament to its success.”

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