Not another quango – how crass!
Oh dear, oh dear. Darling has resorted to the old refuge of tired and impotent politicians; he’s created another quango. Or, more precisely, he’s promised to create one. This one is called the Credit Adjudication Service and, should it ever see the light of day (which I doubt), it will probably be dubbed CrAS.
This new service is supposed to fast-track the investigation of complaints by small businessmen who feel they have been unfairly refused credit by a bank. I am no fan of the banks, but we absolutely do not need an army of civil servants investigating every application for a loan that is turned down for whatever reason.
In reality, if a businessman has a decent business plan he will find a bank willing to lend him money. He just has to shop around. Banks are there to lend money. It’s what they do. The real problem at the moment is that they are overcharging small businesses for this money. Interest rates can be as much as 6% over base and loans usually come with hefty – and unjustified – administration charges.
To be effective, an adjudication service will need teeth. So, in addition to the hundreds of bureaucrats needed to investigate banks’ decisions, there will have to be teams of enforcers. Talk about sledgehammers and nuts!
