Monday, June 8, 2020

BASF a leading recipient of UK coronavirus aid

The German chemicals company BASF has emerged as the biggest beneficiary of the Bank of England’s emergency coronavirus loan scheme, borrowing £1bn in cheap government-backed funding. 
Threadneedle Street revealed for the first time the names of 53 big companies that have borrowed £16.2bn between them, amid rising pressure on the government to place tougher conditions on firms that receive state-backed support. 
The list of businesses benefiting from the cheap funding, which is designed to help businesses weather the economic storm caused by the coronavirus pandemic, included many with a sizeable carbon footprint.... 
...BASF employs about 850 people in Britain at eight plants across the country, producing farming pesticides and chemicals for the car industry.
That's a surprisingly few people, especially for 8 plants. 

(It seems to me that the whole point of initial coronavirus funding was that it needed to be shoveled out the door/dropped from helicopters quickly, so the fact that some large firms got money initially isn't the end of the world in my opinion. Presumably, it could be clawed back?)

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