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£4.6bn relief package for UK retail
January 5, 2021
Retailers hard hit by new lockdown measures will receive grants of up to £9,000 in a £4.6bn Treasury package designed to keep them afloat to the spring.
The chancellor, Rishi Sunak, said he expected 600,000 business properties in retail, leisure and hospitality to receive financial support from the government through a one-off grant.
Acknowledging that the period ahead would be “difficult”, the chancellor said the government was bolstering its efforts to protect jobs and to prevent businesses from collapsing.
The chancellor, Rishi Sunak, said he expected 600,000 business properties in retail, leisure and hospitality to receive financial support from the government through a one-off grant.
Acknowledging that the period ahead would be “difficult”, the chancellor said the government was bolstering its efforts to protect jobs and to prevent businesses from collapsing.
In addition to grants worth £4bn, a further £594m will be made available to local councils to assist businesses impacted by the lockdown but not eligible for the new payments. As part of the package, the Scottish government will receive £375m, the Welsh government £227m and the Northern Ireland executive £127m.
The help is in addition to business rates relief and the furlough scheme, which has been extended until the end of April.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said he would consider whether or how to extend support packages in the Budget on 3 March.
The director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, Adam Marshall, said: “While this immediate cash flow support for business is welcome, it is not going to be enough to save many firms. We need to see a clear support package for the whole of 2021, not just another incremental intervention.
“The government must move away from this drip-feed approach and set out a long-term plan that allows all businesses of all shapes and sizes to plan, and ultimately survive.”
“The government must move away from this drip-feed approach and set out a long-term plan that allows all businesses of all shapes and sizes to plan, and ultimately survive.”
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