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Amendment of the law

I am grateful to the hon. Lady, who shares my concern about that. I wish to refer to a specific instance in my constituency. There is an international company headquartered there, with a turnover of £170 million a year and 248 employees. It has a £16 million loan, which it is not seeking to extend. Its bank is one of the nationalised banks, and the rate is linked to 1 per cent. above base rate. If the Government's policy was working, interest rates for that company should fall. But what has this nationalised bank done? It has said, "Oh, no. You're not going to have 1 per cent. over base, you're going to have 4 per cent. over LIBOR." The company has already had to lay workers off because of the recession. The hike in interest rates means that it will pay an additional £640,000 a year, and to cover that it would have to lay off 20 people. The only way in which it could cover the increase imposed by the nationalised bank would be to lay off 20 people in the research and development department. Although that would cover the costs in the short term, it would greatly damage the future of a leading local company in a field in which it is imperative to remain at the forefront of development. The research and development department is at the cutting edge and does groundbreaking work. It is developing products for use in wind farms and products that reduce weight for transportation—two areas that the Government want to promote. Job cuts to the department would be a huge loss. On top of the significant extra cost that the company faces during the recession, the bank is charging unjustified fees. For example, it has demanded that the company's budget projections are audited at a cost of £25,000. In effect, it is imposing a £25,000 fee that will merely prove that the company's projections are right. We are not talking about a new company or a fly-by-night company; we are talking about an international company that has been in existence for a long time and is extremely well known. The Government have announced a number of schemes to help businesses through the downturn, but that company has not been able to access any funds. It appears that a successful, innovative and respected company based in the UK does not qualify for that money. Lots of money that is inaccessible to businesses is sloshing around quangos, and numerous Government schemes, most of which are not even operating, have been announced. For example, only one agreement has been signed as part of the working capital scheme, which Lord Mandelson announced in January and which was said to be "going live" on 16 January 2009. The position looks even more pitiful if we compare it with the practical help being provided abroad. In France, research and development operations are being encouraged through a scheme that covers 50 per cent. of the cost of staffing research and development projects. That practical help will ensure that those companies come out of the recession with a bright future. It is not surprising that the company in my area is having seriously to consider expanding its research and development project abroad, despite having a firm preference to locate it in the United Kingdom. Surely the Government should be encouraging successful businesses to remain in UK and not to go to France. Do not forget that the company in my constituency is a well established, international company that is based locally and at the cutting edge of its field. Instead of receiving help and support in the recession, it is being punished by a nationalised bank and this Government. The schemes that have been implemented are simply not working, and the help that is available overseas is threatening to encourage companies from this country to relocate abroad. The Government's policies are failing. They are failing the company in my constituency; they are failing thousands of companies across the country; and they are failing the British people.