ISME hits out at ‘skewed’ surveys

VIABLE but vulnerable small businesses need loans to avoid closure, not skewed banking credit surveys, according to ISME chief executive Mark Fielding.

Mr Fielding said that the “dogs on the street” know that Irish banks are not lending to SMEs. He said ISME’s latest quarterly banking credit survey simply confirms the findings of surveys by the Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Cork Chamber and the European Central Bank. The ECB placed Irish SMEs as second least successful, after Greece, in obtaining bank finance.

Some 92% of ISME members surveyed said the Government is having no impact on bank lending. Of those who were refused loans, 88% have been in business for over five years while 42% have been in business for more than 20 years.