Banks slammed over business funding

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The enterprise finance guarantee scheme was launched in January to help small and medium firms unable to borrow due to the international credit crunch.

The Commons Business and Enterprise Committee said that after a "relatively slow start" it was now working well.

However, the committee expressed concern that some businesses were still unable to get access to the full range of support measures under the scheme.

"We understand that in some cases, banks will have to refuse companies' access to the scheme because they have doubts about the long-term viability of the business; this is a perfectly legitimate decision," it said.

"However, members of the committee have been made aware of cases where banks are not offering a choice of support but are offering single measures... to businesses which would be eligible to benefit from this scheme."

The committee said that it is now urging companies to contact it directly if they are experiencing problems.

Committee chairman Peter Luff said: "We will be monitoring whether the scheme is being offered appropriately, and will return to this issue in the autumn if necessary."