ESRI wants the State to guarantee loans for SMEs during the Covid-19 crisis

Mr McQuinn, research professor at the Economic and Social Research Institute, said that guaranteed-loan schemes are "another part of the jigsaw", which other jurisdictions have brought in to help their businesses. File picture.

The ESRI’’s Kieran McQuinn has backed calls for the Government to provide guarantees to allow banks to lend to small firms at "rock-bottom" interest costs to help them survive the severe Covid-19 economic crisis.

Business groups have said that Ireland stands out as one of the few jurisdictions that doesn’’t offer some sort of ultra-cheap or zero-rate interest loans during the crisis.