 The idea of the bank referral scheme was advocated by the Liberal Democrats under Nick Clegg with the former Liberal Democrat Business Secretary, Sir Vince Cable hinting at it in March 2014.The then Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne announced in August 2014 the scheme; after a five-month industry consultation selected British Business Bank (the UK's state development bank) to run the assessment process to recommend three designated finance platforms on behalf of HM Treasury.The scheme which was included in the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 was given Royal Assent in March 2015.