James Moore: No guarantees a state lender would do it better
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Outlook If figures from the Federation of Small Businesses are anything to go by, the creation of a state-backed small business bank is an idea whose time has come.
Despite the Government showering banks with cheap money they are still extremely reluctant to lend it out. According to the FSB a third of businesses which applied for credit over the past three months were refused. For whatever reason, the private sector is failing, and that's bad news for the economy. Time for the state to step in?
It's a seductive idea to many, but they should have a care. First, the questions of who should run it, and, much more importantly, how it should be kept accountable, badly need answering.
As the Hillsborough report showed, the destructive culture of secrecy at the heart of the British state is endemic. Marry that to a bank that lends money to people and consider how badly wrong the private sector's banks went when economic conditions went against them, and the phrase "be careful what you wish for" comes to mind.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments