Will the Minister make a statement of the announcement that Tiny Rebel is to close its Newport city centre bar?
I was disappointed to hear this announcement and I recognise that increased energy bills and the cost-of-living crisis are making this a difficult time for many businesses. The main policy levers for addressing these challenges lie with the UK Government and they should be using measures at their disposal to mitigate the impact of higher prices on businesses. I was disappointed the UK Chancellor did not offer more support in his recent Budget statement.
Here in Wales, we continue to support businesses and are committed to helping them to recover from the impact of the current economic challenges and to thrive in future.
Hospitality businesses are eligible for non-domestic rates relief. We are investing an additional £78 million to provide a fifth successive year of support for retail, leisure and hospitality businesses with their non-domestic rates bills. This builds on almost £1 billion of support provided since 2020-21. Eligible ratepayers will receive 40% non-domestic rates relief for the duration of 2024-25, on top of our range of fully-funded permanent reliefs, which are worth £250 million annually.
In addition, a new £20 million capital fund is being developed for 2024-25 to provide support to help hospitality, retail and leisure businesses future-proof their businesses. We will be providing full details on eligibility shortly.
Visit Wales is working to boost the tourism and hospitality sector with support including capital investment funding and award-winning marketing campaigns, while the Business Wales service is available to help hospitality and catering businesses to build more resilient businesses and develop their business practices.