Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of reports that businesses have had loan applications refused due to their credit histories detailing applications for governmental covid-19 Bounce Back Loans.

Like any commercial credit agreement, Bounce Back Loans are reported by lenders to credit reference agencies, and will be recorded on a borrower’s business credit file. Where a borrower goes into default, this will be reported to credit rating agencies and may impact a borrower’s ability to access credit in the future.

Creditworthiness assessments are ultimately an internal matter for lenders, and it would not be appropriate for the Government to comment on these decisions.