Dublin Chamber of Commerce is calling for the Business Expansion Scheme to be radically reformed by doubling the ceiling on the maximum funds that can be raised by a company from £250,000 to £500,000 (€317,000 to €634,900). The chamber expressed concern yesterday at the fall-off in amount going into BES-funded schemes, which has dropped from £92 million in 1998 to £46 million 1999.

The chamber is also recommending that compliance regulations for investments up to £250,000 be made simpler, that it should be mandatory to invest at least 20 per cent of each fund in companies that are raising £250,000 or less and to include designated declining industry sectors within the qualifying trades.