All of the options under consideration - State loans and guarantees, taking equity stakes and grant aid - have major drawbacks. But we need to be clear what is at stake here. The direct damage to these companies from restrictions is just the first shoe to drop and the effects will be with us for a long time. The damage to business investment spending could continue to damage the economy even when health concerns have ebbed. If you have risk-sharing arrangements in which the Government underwrites a proportion of those loans, with the private sector banks taking the remainder, you may still end up with a slew of bankruptcies.

Source: Irish Independent October 08, 2020 01:30 UTC