Rishi Sunak must stick to his guns

Was the Chancellor wrong to guarantee only 80 per cent, rather than 100, of ‘coronavirus business interruption loans’ to keep small- to medium-sized companies afloat? Rishi Sunak’s announcement this week of fully guaranteed micro-loans for the smallest companies seeking to borrow up to £50,000 was reported as a partial climbdown in the face of pressure from the CBI and many of his own MPs to do away with the on-risk slice of the larger scheme, which provides loans of up to £5 million through 40 accredited banks — but which many would-be borrowers have claimed is a bureaucratic nightmare.

Readers certainly confirm that picture. One in the motor trade tells me he wrangled with Barclays for a month, answering endless ‘cut-and-paste questions’ before finally securing approval. Another, in construction, concluded a vivid account of his battle with Lloyds — so far most criticised for being unhelpful in administering this scheme — with a swipe at ‘a bunch of jobsworths who owe their own survival to a government bailout back in 2008’.