What further financial support will the Welsh Government be providing to businesses that were required to close between December 2020 and spring 2021, for example restart grants that are being made available in England and Scotland?
The Welsh Government recognised the need for a further round of the Economic Resilience Fund (ERF) targeted at businesses that continue to be affected by Covid-19 restrictions and published an eligibility checker and details on how to apply for the latest round of support on the Business Wales website at midday on 17 May.
https://businesswales.gov.wales/coronavirus-advice/
This will top up previous support and provide emergency and transition grants of between £2500 and £25k to eligible businesses to help meet their operating costs for the period between 1st May 2021 and 30th June 2021.
Combined with previous rounds of support, this package will see a Welsh Hospitality business with ten employees and a rates value property above £12k receive up to £52.5k since the latest restrictions started in December 2020.
The package will provide grants to businesses that remain closed or continue to be materially affected by Covid-19 alert level 3 and the transition to alert level 2 restrictions. The funding will support businesses such as restaurants, cafés, pubs, nightclubs, events and conference venues, and other leisure businesses, as well as their supply chains.
Applications opened on 24th May and will close on 7th June at 5pm for the Welsh Government element. The first assessments and approvals have already been made with cash reaching businesses as quickly and efficiently as possible.
In addition and unlike England, our 100% rates relief scheme for retail, hospitality and leisure will run for a full 12 months.
Looking to the future the Welsh Government is developing options for further funding for support packages to help businesses develop and grow sustainably and responsibly. Further details will be announced on the Business Wales website in the coming weeks.
We will continue to do all we can to support Welsh businesses through these incredibly difficult times and consider options beyond the current package of support.