No question that this is a tough time for jobs, livelihoods & businesses. We’ve introduced some business support that is Scotland-specific, which sits alongside the @GOVUK’s v welcome support for wages thru the Job Retention Scheme & Self-Employed scheme. /1
More small businesses can get a £10k grant in Scotland as the eligibility threshold, based on the small business bonus scheme, is higher. You can apply for a £10k grant with a rateable value of up to £18k, whereas the cut-off in rUK is £15k. /2
Self-catering also eligible for £10k & £25k grants if a genuine business - ie its an important source of income for the ratepayer rather than an empty property (eg up to 1/3 of total income & let out 140 days.) That includes rural biz diversifying into self-catering. /3
On Non Domestic Rates, we’ve gone further by effectively freezing bills of *all* Scottish properties at last year’s levels & we’ve extended the 100% rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure sectors to the aviation sector including airports & baggage handlers. /4
The UK-wide schemes are a v good starting point, & I’ve appreciated working with Treasury to smooth out some issues, but we know workers in certain sectors in Scotland have been hit v hard so we’ve created several hardship schemes. /5
First, fishermen first hit crisis months ago as they couldn’t sell or export produce, so an emergency scheme to support 600 of hardest hit fishermen is now open and payments started. /6
Thirdly, today we’ve announced a hardship fund for fish processors who face same issues as fishermen seeing markets disappear. Key employers in rural areas. They can apply for extra funding to get through this difficult time. /8
Fourthly, there is specific financial support for transport sector, including bus operators and taxis who took out low carbon transport loans. /9
Lastly, not biz specific, but there’s also the third sector resilience fund for third sector organisation at risk of closures. They also play a key role in our society and economy. Details here: https://scvo.org/support/coronavirus/funding/for-organisations/third-sector-resilience-fund/eligibility-checker /10
We‘ve tailored support to the Scottish economy, in light of higher number of small business and rural issues, to catch those falling through the cracks. I’m working with UK Gov on UK-wide announcements, whilst still looking at what more we can do to support biz of all sizes. /11
Our principle is to try and help everybody as much as possible. There are some who’ve got a grant that want more grants and others who’ve got nothing that need a helping hand. We’ve got to share resources widely and not give all support to just a few.
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