Only 20 jobs were created with just under £4m invested in businesses under the government’s Enterprise Development Scheme when it was managed by Spark Impact.

Liverpool-based investment company SPARK Impact was awarded an exclusive five-year contract in April 2016 to act as fund manager of the loan and equity elements of the scheme.

But its contract was cut short last year after a review found take-up of investment from the £50m fund had not been as great as expected.

Figures released in a written reply to a Tynwald question reveal that £3.937m was invested in businesses by Spark Impact and 20 jobs were created as a result.

In contrast, an average of 175 jobs are forecast to have been created in 2018-19 with £4,574,759 of investment through the Department for Enterprise’s financial assistance scheme.

Following the ending of the contract with Spark, the Enterprise Development Scheme is now managed directly by the Department for Enterprise. The DfE says it is only just at the point of evaluating applications.