Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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274. To ask the Minister for Finance the extent to which working capital continues to be made available to the farming and business sectors with particular reference to smaller enterprises; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10435/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, supporting SMEs, including those in the farming community, in terms of access to finance has been a cornerstone policy for Government in our efforts to rebuild the economy and bring back jobs.

In terms of monitoring the working capital requirements for SMEs, my Department commissions biannual surveys to ascertain the demand for credit by SMEs. This survey series, most recently conducted by Behaviour & Attitudes on behalf of my Department, is the most comprehensive survey of SME credit demand in Ireland, covering 1,500 respondents and involving over 6,000 direct telephone calls to SMEs. SMEs of all sizes trading in all sectors, excluding property development and speculative activities, are included. The survey covers demand for credit from both bank and non-bank sources.

I would draw the Deputy's attention to the most recently published Department of Finance SME Credit Demand Survey, covering the period April to September 2016, which can be found at .

The results of this survey shows that, when pending applications are excluded, 84% of credit applications to banks were approved or partially approved. Purchases, replacement or lease of new vehicle/equipment is now provided as the main reason for applying for bank finance with 29% stating this is why they requested bank finance. Working capital/cash flow requirements were provided as the second highest reason for applying for bank finance with 27% of respondents stating that they required finance for this purpose. When asked about sources of finance for working capital, internal funds/retained earnings were the main finance source of working capital with 73% of working capital coming from this source (up 6%). The survey also showed continued positive trends in terms of trading performance, profitability and employment.

The SME State Bodies Group, chaired by my Department, provides a forum for the development and implementation of policy measures to enhance SMEs' access to a stable and appropriate supply of finance. As the Deputy will be aware, the Action Plan for Jobs over the past number of years has set out a range of commitments to ensure viable SMEs can access appropriate finance at a reasonable cost from both bank and non-bank sources. These Government policies have supported year on year increases in new lending to SMEs, as measured by the Central Bank.

It should be noted that the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) have reported that, as at end June 2016, 24% of their loans (by value) were to SMEs operating in the agriculture sector. The SBCI recently launched the €150 million Agriculture Cashflow Support Loan Scheme for Farmers, which was announced by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in Budget 2017. This fund will provide highly flexible, low interest loans to farming SMEs, which can be used for working capital funds. 

All viable SMEs operating in Ireland should have the opportunity to access sufficient finance to meet their enterprise needs in a manner that supports growth and employment in the economy and the Government remains committed to the SME sector, as reflected in the Programme for a Partnership Government. Consequently, my Department and the Credit Review Office, working with the other relevant Departments and Agencies, will continue to monitor the availability of both bank and non-bank credit to viable SMEs including those in the farming community.