The North East Lincolnshire branch of the Federation of Small Businesses has welcomed the Chancellor's announcement but says he needs to go further
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a new series of grants totalling £4.6 billion for UK businesses
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a new series of grants totalling £4.6 billion for UK businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors to support and protect jobs during the third national lockdown.
Businesses in the three sectors will be able to claim a one-off grant worth up to £9,000.
There will also be a £594 million discretionary fund made available to support other impacted businesses, in addition to a further £1.1 billion for local authorities and Local Restriction Support Grants worth up to £3,000 a month.
The furlough scheme will also be extended to April.
Rishi Sunak said: “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.”
Claire Reading from the North East Lincolnshire branch of the Federation of Small Businesses welcomes the Chancellor's announcement but says he needs to go further.
She says "While these additional financial support packages will have value to some businesses in the area. There's a need for a plan that matches the scale of the economic damage we're seeing. For many of the businesses I've spoken to - it just won't be enough"
She continues " There are still too many groups who need more support to weather the storm. Such as the newly self employed, those who are in the supply chains and company directors. We continue to call on the Government to create a directors income support scheme that mirrors the self employed support scheme"