Support for Businesses

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales – in the Senedd at 1:38 pm on 27 January 2021.

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Photo of Ken Skates Ken Skates Labour 1:38, 27 January 2021

Can I thank Hefin David not just for his questions, but also for the opportunity to meet with him recently and the representatives of businesses from Caerphilly? I thought it was a very valuable discussion that we had, and certainly we are always exploring how we can plug the gaps that people and businesses are falling through as a result of the UK Government and the Welsh Government schemes. Now, the Deputy Minister, I should, first of all, say, recently met with ExcludedUK—my colleague Jane Hutt—to discuss issues and problems faced by many millions of people across the United Kingdom, including here in Wales. In addition to this, the Minister for Finance and I recently wrote to the Chancellor, pressing him for further support to be made available to businesses and to working people. Today, Members may have seen that, in Prime Minister's questions, the Prime Minister was asked about extending business and employee support to ensure that fewer people and businesses fall through the gaps, and he said that a statement would be forthcoming regarding that very matter. 

Our package has been designed with, obviously, affordability in mind, but also with the available funding that we have, and sometimes we have had to make difficult decisions. But our purpose has been to plug as many gaps as possible left by UK Government schemes. And with regard to some of the examples that Hefin has outlined, and first of all the dance business, while a business without PAYE staff can't access the ERF sector fund, a business that has a rateable property would be able to, via their local authority, secure a grant of £3,000 or £5,000 from the ERF restrictions fund. And that also applies to the businesses within the hair and beauty sector. Now, Hefin is also right that, last Friday, the First Minister outlined an additional £200 million that will be made available to support businesses in the coming weeks. The details of that additional support package will be published very soon, in a matter of days. In the meanwhile, I should also assure Members that the discretionary fund operated by local authorities remains open to applications. That's a £25 million fund, and that fund is designed to allow businesses to secure grants of up to £2,000.