Brown calls on UK Government to throw ‘cash lifeline’ to businesses

Former prime minister Gordon Brown is to warn the liquidity crisis earlier this year threatens to become a solvency crisis unless the government gets ahead of the coronavirus curve.

Citing evidence from France, Germany, Sweden and Singapore, Mr Brown will call for a huge increase in support for companies to give them a “cash lifeline”.

In the absence of a vaccine, Mr Brown believes millions should be offered a Covid-19 saliva test to help the country back to work.

He will tell the British Chambers of Commerce: “More help with lending, infrastructure, skills training and export credits will ma k e a difference, especially in the north.

“In other countries – France, Germany, Sweden, Singapore, Ireland, New Zealand – equity for loans initiatives are being put

into place to help both strategically important large firms and also start-up and growth companies.

“I would now ask the Growth Fund and Future Fund to create regional hubs, treble their activity and offer viable companies the chance to convert their loans into equity.

“It will only be through growth that we can bring

employment back, expand the consumer economy, reduce the deficit and debt and, as important, bring back hope.”

Mr Brown is co-founder of the Alliance for Full Employment, which is lobbying for the English regions, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland to be able to design recovery programmes to avoid mass unemployment.

Gordon Brown fears companies are facing insolvency.