Letters to the Editor – 23/06 – Alternative finance, Parties of liberty, Best of Twitter
Alternative finance
[Re: Santander refers rejected small business loans to Funding Circle, Thursday]
It is welcome to see Santander taking a progressive attitude to lending by promoting alternative financial solutions. The greatest barrier to SME growth is a lack of education of the types of funding available. For many, alternative forms of finance offer the greatest opportunity. Ambitious businesses need to gain a better understanding of their funding options, so that those that wish to are able to grow confidently and become the “recovery engine” the UK so desperately needs.
Steve Websdale, executive board member, ABN AMRO Commercial Finance
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Parties of liberty
[Re: It’s not enough for Tories to love liberty – Britain needs two parties of freedom, Friday]
Marc Sidwell is right that the battleground of British politics needs to rediscover a love for liberty. But I’ve given up hope for the Lib Dems and Labour. The former is dying – only interested in gimmicks like free school meals. The latter has rejected Blairism completely. It’s now solely the party of the public sector. But what of Ukip? While it’s positioning itself away from its libertarian roots, if Scotland votes for independence, it’s not unfeasible that the Whig-Tory split will be reborn in England under new names.
Name withheld
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BEST OF TWITTER
Given the choice between a new Iraqi government and de facto independence, most Kurds choose latter.
@ianbremmer
Fossil fuels are not, in fact, subsidised in Europe. €432bn net revenue.
@mjhsinclair
Big shifts in burden of UK taxation. Consumers via VAT take the strain.
@econhedge
Morgan Stanley’s Vince Reinhart estimates sustained $10 increase in oil price lowers US GDP 0.4 per cent.
@bondvigilantes