PUBS and hospitality organisations have said today's announcement of a £6,000 grant to help businesses from the Chancellor 'is absolutely not enough for this time of year'.
Rishi Sunak has offered a £1 billion support package to businesses hit by Covid restrictions amid concerns over the “eye-wateringly high” transmission of the Omicron variant.
The Chancellor has come forward with additional help for the hospitality and leisure sectors in England following days of urgent lobbying from MPs, firms and industry officials.
It includes one-off grants of up to £6,000 per premises for businesses in the affected sectors in England, which the Treasury expects will be administered by local authorities and to be available in the coming weeks.
Read more: £1bn Covid business bailout with £6k grants for pubs
Although some North East organisations have said this is welcome, others have said it simply 'is not enough'.
Tim Moloney, manager and landlord of the Poverina Inn in Middlesbrough said: “[The grant] is absolutely not [enough] for this time of year. We’re seeing a massive decrease in sales over the last three or four months because people are worried.
"There’s a lot of scaremongering going on, although I do believe this Omicron variant is a massive risk to ourselves and stuff like that, I think we’ve got to find a way of keeping ourselves safe, but also move on with life and keep our life going.
“We’re struggling in terms of financial support and working with staff. The problem is, it’s not as simple as our staff calling in sick, it’s then the repercussions of all the other staff that have to isolate for that. We haven’t got nearly as many staff as we normally have.
“We had to make cutbacks, to the point where you’re putting in action plans for Christmas Day, because we’re open Christmas Day. At the moment we’ve got our chef that’s going to be working Christmas Day, not working because we don’t want him to be ill on Christmas Day. We’ve had to split the team up to be able to accommodate for that, so if any of the team go down it’s not going to affect any of the Christmas Day bookings.
“[The grant] depends on the stipulations it’s not as easy as being given £6,000 to everyone. It’s going to be based on the support. I haven’t had a chance to look at it.
“We’ve seen a massive drop in sales, the problem that we’re seeing is that you can’t get a trend going. Since before Covid no two days are the same, no two weekends are the same. There’ll be one weekend where people will think sack it lets go out then you’ll get quite a lot in, next minute you’ve got no one in.”
The Government also intends to use taxpayers’ cash to cover the cost of statutory sick pay for Covid-related absences for firms with fewer than 250 employees.
Graham Soult, who runs a Gateshead-based retail consultancy and is a High Streets Task Force Expert, said: “The support announced today is welcome and necessary, as the uncertainty around Omicron in recent weeks has undoubtedly had a negative impact on people’s willingness to go out and socialise.
"Throughout the pandemic, the Chancellor has shown a willingness to support business, and that, together with businesses’ own creativity and resilience, has definitely helped prevent a worse situation until now.
“So, it would be a great pity if all that previous support were undermined by not giving businesses enough help now.
“I hope that the government will show willingness to provide additional financial support for hospitality if it is required in the coming weeks, while also recognising that retail sales too have been hit by the decline in footfall in recent weeks.
“It’s really remarkable how many businesses have not just survived the pandemic so far, but even opened in the midst of it – with 30 new city centre retail and hospitality businesses in Durham alone. So, the government must do everything it can to avoid us losing this positive momentum on the High Street.”
Cultural organisations in England can also access a further £30 million funding during the winter via the culture recovery fund, the Treasury said.
Rachel Anderson, assistant director of policy, North East England Chamber of Commerce said: “This is good news from the Treasury and the grant will help some businesses to weather the downturn in trade although the grant funds probably won’t close the gap on what their fully booked takings would have been over the Christmas period.
"It is also good to see that the supply chains haven't been forgotten and discretionary grants should be available through Local Authorities.
“The obvious omission though is support for the workforce and we have no details yet on whether there will be any help for those workers who find themselves without shifts."
Mr Sunak’s announcement follows crisis talks with business leaders after he cut short a Government business trip to California.
Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) National Chairman Mike Cherry said: “These positive measures will help alleviate the intense pressures that small firms are currently under, and hopefully arrest a significant decline in confidence over this year.
“With the prospect of one million people sick or self-isolating by January, we encouraged the Chancellor to bring back the Covid statutory sick pay rebate – we’re pleased to see our recommendation taken forward today.
“This move will reduce stress for small employers up and down the country, helping those who are struggling most with depleted cashflow. It’s vital that small firms – once again up against a massively disrupted festive season – can reclaim the costs of supporting staff.
“The Government has also rightly taken forward other aspects of our ten-point plan, with £1bn worth of grant support for the hardest-hit sectors, alongside accelerated delivery of the business rates relief fund for supply chains launched months ago.
“The encouragement of HMRC to give as much breathing space as possible to small firms as we head towards tax return season will also come as a relief to many.
“We’ve always said that support needs to move in lockstep with restrictions, and this intervention will help give small businesses confidence that this is the approach Government will be taking.”
Businesses have seen takings plummet due to Christmas festivities being scaled back amid fear over the spread of Omicron.
The Open North Foundation (ONF) has announced that it will immediately broaden its scope to support North East businesses impacted by recent government Covid measures to combat the Omicron variant.
ONF was established in July 2022 by members of the business community who volunteer their time to support firms viable pre-Covid, and which could benefit from targeted funding and free services to assist with the recovery. It is non-profit and has raised tens of thousands from donations as well as services from within the North East business community.
Richard Swart, ONF chair, said: “We were set up as a unique business-led response to help firms damaged by Covid. It makes sense with the worsening of the situation, to now step up with this change of focus. Although the grants and services are free, they are subject to resources and availability.
“We have a duty of care to make sure the best possible judgments are made to use our donors money for the intended purposes. Applicants can apply via our website www.opennorthfoundation.co.uk. Due diligence is applied by our grant application committee. They will need to demonstrate clear, negative impact, with evidence and also how they can benefit from the targeted free financial assistance and services we offer.”
The committee will meet early January to consider all applications on their merits.
Mr Swart added: “We are delighted to have reached our target of 20 successful applications before Christmas. We have resources for many more and each will be judged on their merits.
“We will continue to do all we can to maximise the positive difference we are making to help the North East through this dreadful period of our lives and we thank all who have supported us so generously to make it possible. Donations can be made via our website as we are sadly a long way off from seeing the back of Covid. Not a penny raised is spent on anything other than the qualifying beneficiaries. All who work for us do so for free.”
This comes as Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of the global charitable foundation Wellcome, warned “we’re in the most difficult, most uncertain time, perhaps of the whole pandemic, certainly since March of 2020”.
Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
You can also follow our dedicated Teesside Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.
For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.
Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel