Dr Vince Cable demands changes to help SMEs with funds
www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 30th November2013
Obituary
Arjan Karsandas Vekaria
The Business Secretary is concerned that lending to SMEs has not picked up yet and said that credit is actually finding its way mainly to the housing market Rt Hon Vince Cable has warned the Treasury that it must make changes to its Funding for Lending Scheme unless Britain's small and medium sized enterprises shows considerable improvement. The Asian Community which mostly owns many small to medium sized enterprises have found a voice in Mr Cable's comment, especially after Bank of England and the HM Treasury have released a report on the new data regarding the 2nd Quarter of the FLS scheme. It is estimated that ethnic minority businesses represent around 7% of the total small business stock. The Business Secretary is concerned that lending to SMEs has
their lending to the UK real economy. It does this by providing funding to banks and building societies for an extended period, with both the price and quantity of funding provided linked to their lending performances. However, the Bank and HM Treasury announced an extension to the FLS on 24 April 2013. This extends the scheme by one year to allow participants to borrow Daniel Rajkumar, Managing Director from the FLS until at rebuildingsociety.com January 2015, with incentives to boost lendnot picked up yet and said ing skewed towards small that credit is actually findand medium sized entering its way mainly to the prises (SMEs). housing market, where Despite of a large proexperts fear that it could portion of the FLS particilead to a worrying 'properpants indicated their ty bubble'. intention to participate in Sources from the the extended Scheme, in Department for Business stark contrast, net lending Innovation and Skills in to SMEs — the new loans the start of 2013 said, advanced compared with there were an estimated the amount paid off by 4.9 million small businesscustomers — tumbled by es in the UK which £400 million in employed 24.3 million September, according to people, and had a comthe latest figures from the bined turnover of £3,300 Bank of England. billion. SMEs accounted Dr Cable told a daily, for 99.9% of of all private “I’ve been concerned sector businesses in the about it from the outset UK, 59.3% of private secand I’ve raised the issue tor employment and with my colleagues in 48.1% of private sector Government and with the turnover. SMEs employed Governor of the Bank of 14.4 million people and England. It was revamped had a combined turnover a few months ago to make of £1,600 billion. Small it more available to busibusinesses alone accountness, but we haven’t seen ed for 47 per cent of pria sign yet that it’s supportvate sector employment ing SMEs. and 33.1 per cent of “So far, it is predomiturnover. 45,000 of SMEs nantly a mortgage-supplyin London are owned by ing institution and we Asians, according to a need to be really careful report in 2007. because we don’t want to The Bank and HM have a disaster of a housTreasury launched the ing market.” Funding for Lending According to a report Scheme (FLS) on 13 July in The Times, gross mort2012. The FLS is designed gage lending continued to to incentivise banks and power ahead last month, building societies to boost surging by 36.6% to £17.6
billion compared with October last year, the Council for Mortgage Lenders said. It was the highest monthly figure since the financial crisis struck in October 2008. Low rates, combined with the Government’s cheap credit schemes Help to Buy and Funding for Lending, have helped to buoy the housing market, but economists now fear that the market may be about to overheat. Paul Fisher, Executive Director for Markets at the Bank of England, reportedly said: “The FLS is continuing to support lending to the UK economy with a range of indicators suggesting that credit conditions are steadily improving for households and firms, and FLS participants collectively expect net lending volumes to pick up over the remainder of this year.” Commenting Daniel Rajkumar, Managing Director at rebuildingsociety.com said: “We are fully behind Vince Cable in calling for more effective capital distribution to UK SMEs. Mainstream Banks are driven by risk and view lending to individuals against residential mortgages as lower risk than the vitally important role of helping UK businesses to grow. The Government should look beyond mainstream lending to support more alternative SME lenders, like peer-to-business lending which not only allows successful business people to invest at highly attractive rates but also to become a valued stakeholder in that business.“We urge the Government to review its policy for distribution of finance for business lending and to expand outside its traditional lending channels to other more specialist providers.”
On Saturday 23 November, Arjanbhai Vekaria, President of the Hindu Forum of Britain (HFB), the largest umbrella body for British Hindus, Editor-in-Chief of Hindu Today magazine and Demystifying India, and a successful business man, philanthropist and community leader, passed away, while he was travelling in India on business. He would have turned 60 in December. Born on 6 December 1954, in Kampala, Uganda, he studied in India and arrived in the UK in June 1974. He started work on a construction site as a building labourer, then progressed to Carpenter Supervisor, later to Site Manager in 1976. He co-founded Vascroft Construction, which now has over 200 staff and a turnover of £35m. He was elected President of the HBF in 2009, appointed Justice of the Peace (Magistrate) in April 2004, was actively involved in setting up a series of training courses and workshops for young offenders in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Hindu Association and became Governor of Copland Community School in Wembley in 2007. Arjanji was Trustee of the Vascroft Foundation (a charity that aims to assist in humanitarian causes across the globe) and was appointed Chairman of the Samakti Mission UK in 2005, organ-
UK
ising discourses and seminars in English with learned Scholars and Saints from India. He has also been a past President and an active member of SKLPC and a founding member of the Indian Jewish Association. On 26th November the last rites (antim sanskaar) were held at Madhapur, Kutch, Gujarat. A sea of people (1500) from all walks of life who he touched were present on Tuesday, 10am. Tributes poured in from many people around the world including British politicians Rt Hon Ed Miliband, Shailesh Vara MP, Priti Patel MP and several heads of organisations worldwide. Representatives including that of Brahma Kumaris from Mt Abu, SKLPC President Maujibhai Vekaria, Govindbhai of Imagine Tile, Premji Vasani of KK Builders, Vishram Vekaria of Rubicon, Hindu Today Editor Pradip Sharma, Hindu Forum General Secretary Swaminarthan Vaidyanathan, MLS Chase Partner Manoj Ladwa, renowned Bollywood musician Anandnji, Indian entrepreneurs Damjibhai Anchorwala, Amarson Premson and Keshubhai Bhudiya from East Africa attended the cremation. He is survived by wife Jayaben, mother Binduben, elder brother Shashibhai, daughters Panna and Khyati, nephew Mitesh, niece Chandni and other family members.
Prayer meetings to honour Arjanbhai will be held on:
Wednesday 27 Nov 7-8pm: Arjanbhai's residence, 14 Crawford Avenue, Wembley Friday 29 Nov 8-10pm: SKLPC, West End Road, Northolt (Shok sabha) Saturday 30 Nov 4:30-5:30pm: SKSS Kenton Temple, Westfield Lane, Kenton Sunday 1 Dec 3-4pm: SSTW Willesden Temple, 220-222 Willesden Lane
AUCTION Thursday, 12th December 2013 Time: 12.00 Noon (unless sold prior) Venue: Radisson Blu Portman Hotel, Portman Square, London W1
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