Insights

New Year, New Lockdown. The Chancellor Rishi Sunak has confirmed that firms who will suffer during the new lockdown are to receive extra financial support for the period.

Retail, hospitality and leisure sector businesses are being offered one off grants worth up to £9,000 because they will be required to remain closed until the mid-February school half term week.

This is in addition to the other support already available – furlough scheme, previous business rates support, bounce back loans and other financial support, plus more time to pay taxes.

The money offered is being provided on a ‘per property basis’ and expected to benefit over 600,000 business properties, worth £4bn in total across all nations of the UK.

A further £594m will be made available for local authorities to support firms that do not qualify for these grants on a case-by-case basis.

There is currently a spring budget scheduled for 3 March 2021 and today Rishi Sunak suggests this will still go ahead, with more Covid support measures likely to be announced.

There has been criticism that the extra support announced today does not go far enough and that furlough should be extended and statutory sick pay increased.

Sunak has not provided any firm hints as yet, but he did say that “The budget in early March is an excellent opportunity to take stock of the range of support that we’ve put in place, and to set out the next stage, our economic response to coronavirus at that particular time.”

Be prepared for further developments as the lockdown continues and we will keep you updated with news as it becomes available.

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