Ulster Unionist Economy spokesperson, Sandra Overend MLA, has welcomed the latest data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders which indicates increased mortgage activity as an early sign of economy recovery. However, access to finance for small and medium sized businesses remains a challenge to be addressed.
The Mid Ulster MLA said;
‘The latest available data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders is a much needed early sign of an economy which is moving in the right direction in terms of a recovery. The improvement in the first-time buyer marker, up 36% from this time last year, is particularly welcome and the overall increase of 20% in mortgage activity is certainly reason for optimism. However, it must be remembered that these increases are coming off extremely low levels of activity in the first place and there is still significant progress to be made.’
“With regard to the area of access to finance I remain particularly concerned about the inability of small and medium sized enterprises to access finance at a time of real economic hardship. This is an issue which the new Finance Minister Simon Hamilton must address with the banks as a matter of priority as SMEs are being forced out of business as a result of what they consider to be inflexible lenders.”