Written question asked by Helen Grant (Conservative) on Thursday, 31 March 2011, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 4 April 2011. It was answered by Mark Prisk (Conservative) on Tuesday, 5 April 2011 on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Business: Maidstone

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has had recent discussions with representatives of small and medium-sized enterprises located in Maidstone and the Weald constituency on their access to credit.

Answer: Both the Secretary of State and I meet regularly with national business representative bodies—such as the British Chambers of Commerce, the Federation of Small Businesses, the Federation of Private Businesses, the Institute of Directors, and the Confederation of British Industry. At these meetings, a range of matters are discussed, which include access to finance for small businesses.In addition, the Small Business Economic Forum, chaired by me, meets quarterly. This forum includes representatives from a number of small business representative bodies. The most recent meeting was held on 4 April, and the agenda included items on the progress being made by the British Bankers Association in implementing their Business Finance Taskforce proposals, and exporting.These representations have a national focus, rather than focusing on the Maidstone and the Weald specifically. However, BIS data and other research indicate that access to finance is an issue that affects small businesses all across the UK to a broadly equal extent.

Secondary information