Hospitality, retail and leisure businesses will be entitled to a grant of up to £9,000 to help them get through England’s third lockdown, the chancellor has announced.
The one-off top-ups will be given to closed businesses as part of a £4.6 billion support package announced by the Treasury today.
The support comes after the prime minister again ordered the nation to stay at home and closed all schools, in a bid to drive down spiralling Covid-19 infection rates.
Parliament is set to be recalled to sit on Wednesday so MPs can debate the latest measures, but Boris Johnson said people should follow the new rules from now until mid-February.
However, today Cabinet minister Micheal Gove said they may not be lifted until the end of March.
The latest Treasury payments are expected to support 600,000 business properties across the UK, costing £4 billion.
Business grants
The one-off top-ups will be granted to closed businesses as follows:
- £4,000 for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 or under
- £6,000 for businesses with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000
- £9,000 for businesses with a rateable value of over £51,000
Further information can be found here.
Another £594 million will be made available to councils and devolved nations to support businesses not covered by the new grants.
Last month, Rishi Sunak announced the furlough scheme would be extended until the end of April.
Announcing the new support, Mr Sunak said: ‘The new strain of the virus presents us all with a huge challenge – and whilst the vaccine is being rolled out, we have needed to tighten restrictions further.
‘Throughout the pandemic we’ve taken swift action to protect lives and livelihoods and today we’re announcing a further cash injection to support businesses and jobs until the Spring.
‘This will help businesses to get through the months ahead – and crucially it will help sustain jobs, so workers can be ready to return when they are able to reopen.’
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source https://metro.co.uk/2021/01/05/pubs-and-gyms-to-get-covid-lockdown-grant-worth-up-to-9000-13848767/