asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they plan to introduce micro-credit programmes to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises for women in the United Kingdom. [HL786]

Over the next year, regional development agencies from five regions are trialling different approaches to supporting the start-up and growth of female-owned businesses. The pilot regions are the north-west, north-east, Yorkshire and the Humber, the East Midlands and the West Midlands. The purpose is to provide female-friendly business support from pre start stage onwards.

WEETU's “Full Circle Fund”, a micro-credit programme for women, has been running for several years, with the benefit of support from DTI's Phoenix Fund and has offered loans to more than 500 business starters.