REGION: The Federation of Small Businesses has responded to figures showing a £0.8bn net decrease in lending to small businesses in the fourth quarter of 2014.

Neil Eames, development manager for the Federation of Small Businesses in Wessex, said: “These figures suggest that while we have seen some positive signs recently, credit conditions remain challenging for smaller companies.

“Evidence shows that rather than turn to their banks, they are increasingly using their own resources to meet their financing needs and paying down their debts rather than increasing them. Growth in alternative lenders – ‘peer to peer’ lenders – have provided further sources of finance away from traditional banks.”