The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation has said 'detailed work' is under way on a Government-backed loan guarantee scheme for viable small businesses.
Batt O'Keeffe was speaking at Small Firms' Association's annual conference in Dublin. Earlier, SFA chairman Dr Aidan O'Boyle told RTÉ the body wanted see such a scheme introduced.
Minister O'Keeffe said it would be important that any scheme would complement, rather than substitute for, the main banks' lending commitments under the State's recapitalisation package.
The Minister said officials in his department and the Department of Finance were looking at options for the loan guarantee scheme. He said he hopes the talks could be finalised 'very shortly'.
Minister O'Keeffe said the scheme would be aimed at commercially viable businesses which fail to get credit because of 'insufficient collateral and information deficits' despite having demonstrated an ability to repay.
The Minister said Ireland was one of the few EU nations that did not have some form of loan guarantee scheme.
