THE Federation of Small Businesses in the West Midlands is pleased to back the Birmingham Post’s campaign calling for government support for Jaguar Land Rover.

It might seem a little surprising for our organisation to be doing this as JLR is not a company likely to be found in our membership lists – it’s a bit on the big side! But it is a vital part of the automotive industry supply chain on which many small businesses rely.

This campaign is not about propping up an ailing business, but about showing faith in a viable and successful one.

We’re supporting the campaign, not just for the many small businesses who supply Jaguar Land Rover (and their suppliers), but also for the many other businesses that are very far removed from manufacturing and also rely on JLR’s continued success.

There are many examples. The sandwich shops and pubs near the suppliers’ factories that provide refreshments at lunchtime or after work; the training companies keeping employees’ skills up to date; the book-keepers, accountants and solicitors providing professional services to small businesses; the private nurseries providing child-care to parents working in all those businesses. And last, but by no means least, the local businesses where employees spend their wages.

Here in the West Midlands, manufacturing is still a vital part of our economy. True, it does not employ the same high number of people that it did in the 60s and 70s, but there are still significant numbers of West Midlanders who make a living out of the sector, directly or indirectly. Just like the companies they work for, they contribute to our local and national economy through the money they spend and the taxes they pay.

JLR is not asking for a grant but a repayable loan. The short-term loans or loan guarantees that are being sought from government through this campaign are only needed because of the failure by the banks to provide normal credit flows to business. We hope the announcements spoken of in the weekend media about likely Treasury announcements this week are favourable.

The fact that Jaguar Land Rover is struggling to obtain the credit to continue trading, simply highlights how tough it is out there for all businesses. By helping JLR, the government will go some way to help many other businesses. But there must also be continued pressure on the banks and other financial institutions not to move the goal-posts of their lending criteria, especially with their small business customers. Just like JLR, there are still very many small businesses out there that are trading successfully, but finding it harder than it should be because their lines of credit have been crunched too.

* Denise Craig is the West Midlands’ Policy Manager for the Federation of Small Businesses.