7. Will the Minister make a statement on financial support for businesses closed in January 2021 due to COVID-19 regulations? OQ56188

Yes, absolutely. On Friday 22 January, we further enhanced our package of support to businesses affected by alert level four restrictions by £200 million, taking its total to £650 million.

Thank you, Minister. I can tell you that that money will be not just very welcome, but is needed in Wales. Now, I have a number of small accommodation owners contacting me stating that the only Welsh Government funding they can access is the restrictions business fund non-domestic rate grant. It seems that, for some reason, now, tourism businesses are blocked from the sector specific fund that I thought was initially aimed at them. They cannot apply. This is what one Aberconwy business owner told me last week: 'We are approaching breaking point now. We've taken all available measures to keep our outgoings to an absolute minimum, but our monthly overheads are simply too great for us.' You have to remember that, here in Aberconwy, most of these businesses have been in lockdown since 1 October, and then the series of lockdowns that came afterwards. So, there is reason for hope as a further £200 million has been announced, but we've not been provided with the details as to how this will be used, and the set criteria. So, would you clarify this today? But more importantly, do you think that you could look at small guesthouses, bed and breakfasts, and those that don't have half a dozen employees? Sometimes they're just small businesses, but once their income goes, they are in a real fix. Thanks.

Can I thank Janet Finch-Saunders for her question, which is so very important to the economy, not just of her constituency, but to north Wales and, indeed, the whole of Wales? Tourism and hospitality are vitally important, supporting thousands upon thousands of people, many of whom are amongst the lowest income earners, and are most likely to be adversely impacted themselves by coronavirus. So, that's why this Welsh Government is so determined to support the sector as much as possible. Indeed, I've already outlined how 10,600 business in tourism and hospitality have already applied for that sector-specific financial support. We're keeping that fund open for an extra period of time to ensure that many of those businesses that have not applied do apply.

I can't comment on the points raised in respect of the specific business that Janet Finch-Saunders outlined, but of course, if the Member would write to me, we'll look at the detail of that particular case. But I can assure the Member that, within Conwy local authority, 146 offers worth more than £1.4 million have already been made to businesses through the sector specific fund. I believe that 67 businesses have already accepted those offers, and in terms of the latest restrictions fund, which is a significant fund indeed, within the local authority area of Conwy, more than 2,160 grants have already been paid out, amounting to more than £6.8 million. So, that demonstrates how money is getting into those business accounts at speed, and on top of that there is still £25 million available through the local authority discretionary funds, available for businesses—often those businesses that have fallen through the gaps. But of course, if the Member wishes to write to me with those specific cases, I would be happy to respond to her correspondence.