§ Mr. KidneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he has taken to help developers of agriculture-related projects obtain access to venture capital. [130732]
§ Ms HewittThe Enterprise Fund's venture capital elements, the UK High Technology Fund and the Regional Venture Capital Funds, are being established to stimulate the availability of equity finance for smaller businesses which offer significant growth potential.
A range of agriculture-related projects will be eligible to receive equity funding through the Enterprise Fund venture capital schemes. However, all investment decisions under these programmes will be made by professional Fund Managers in pursuit of the best possible commercial returns for their funds. It is therefore not possible to pre-determine the sectors in which investments will be made.