Is the government doing enough to support established smaller businesses in the Isle of Man?

That was the question put to Economic Development Minister Laurence Skelly at a hearing of Tynwald’s economic policy review committee.

Committee members acknowledged the role of the Enterprise Development Scheme to help attract new business to the island.

Mr Skelly said funding was a key issue for supporting industry.

’We have done the Enterprise Development Scheme, which is gathering momentum, doing deals and we are see jobs being created.’

He said the scheme’s fund had invested £2 million so far, through six investments that would have * initial impact of 25 jobs, potentially reaching to a total of 150.

Six further investments were in progress, he said, with a further £2 million investment on the cards in the near future. They had potential for 67 jobs initially, going up to 200.

A total of 350 jobs from an investment of £4 million so far, he said, represented ’good value’.

The £50m EDS was set up to assist businesses that would create jobs in the island. It is managed for the government by SPARK Impact.

Committee member Tim Baker said he had spoken to a number of established island businesses and some were in a position where they required investment but, as they did not always involve job creation, it was difficult to obtain assistance from the department’s schemes, including the EDS.

’It felt as though there was a gap for locally-based businesses, already real, tangible, physical businesses, employing people in the island, who want to go to the next stage and who have a funding challenge,’ he said.

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’What are we doing to address that?’

Committee colleague Jason Moorhouse added that he had heard similar concerns.

Mr Skelly agreed the Enterprise Development Scheme was focused on job creation, but added that local firms were still eligible.

He said there were other schemes for businesses and said that, when the EDS was launched, the financial support available under these schemes was increased to £5,000.

The minister added: ’We welcome feedback from industry as to whether we need to still tweak our existing schemes and also try and encourage the private sector to step in if there is an investment at a different level that does not quite fit our criteria.’

Mr Skelly said the department was keen to create opportunities for businesses to find investors.

Mark Lewin, acting chief executive at the Department of Economic Development, said: ’One of our challenges is we have a finite amount of resource.’

Traditionally, banks were seen as one of the first ports of call for established businesses seeking to expand, he said, but he acknowledged that landscape had changed.