£120m financial support for businesses in Wales impacted by Omicron
Businesses in Wales impacted by the rapid spread of the Omicron virus will be eligible for emergency financial support under a new Welsh Government support package.
The Economy Minister, Vaughan Gething, has announced the details of the £120m funding which will be available for retail, hospitality, leisure and tourism business and their supply chains affected by the move to alert level 2, as announced by the First Minister on Wednesday 22 December.
Under the latest package, retail, hospitality, leisure and tourism business who pay Non Domestic Rates will be entitled to a payment of £2,000, £4,000 or £6,000 depending on their rateable value. Businesses will need to re-register their details, through a quick and easy online process, with their local authority in order to receive their payments.
Registration will open via local authority websites from the week commencing 10 January.
The Welsh Government has decided to extend this support to non-essential retail so that smaller shops, and Travel Agents will be supported and our high streets can continue to thrive. In England, support is not available to non-essential retail.
In addition, impacted hospitality and leisure businesses and their supply chains will be able to apply for top up funding from a new Economic Resilience Fund (ERF). Eligible businesses can apply for grants of between £2,500k - £25,000, with grants dependent on their size and number of employees. The application window for ERF will open in week commencing 17 January 2022 with payments starting to reach businesses within days.
Local Authorities will also administer a Discretionary fund for business and sole traders who do not pay rates. The fund will provide £500 to sole trader and freelancers and £2,000 to employing businesses in impacted sectors. Further details to follow on Business Wales.
An eligibility checker which will help businesses to gauge how much they can expect to receive under the new support package will be available on Business Wales by the start of 2022.
Economy Minister, Vaughan Gething, said:
“We fully understand the continued challenges faced by businesses, however we are facing a very serious situation in Wales. A wave of infections caused by the new, fast-moving and very-infectious omicron variant is headed our way, this means taking early action to try and control its spread – and limit the impact on Welsh businesses.
“Since the start of the pandemic, we’ve provided over £2.2bn of support to businesses throughout Wales to help them manage their way through difficult circumstances.
“We will continue to monitor the impact of the spread of Omicron on businesses in Wales, and will consider whether additional emergency funding is needed in the new year.”
Business Wales will be updated with details, frequently asked question and support guidance: Business Wales: COVID-19 Support for Business.
Alert level 2 (from 26 December)
The measures that apply at alert level 2:
The Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 5) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 25) Regulations 2021 is also available on Gov.Wales.
COVID-19 SAFETY REMINDERS:
Keep Wales Safe at Work
When considering what you need to do to keep your workforce safe at work, visit the Business Wales website for detailed guidance, examples and resources.
Reasonable Measures to Minimise Coronavirus
Advice for businesses and organisations about reasonable measures to take to minimise the risk of coronavirus can be found on: Reasonable measures action cards for businesses and organisations: coronavirus | GOV.WALES. Please check back for updated details for changes coming into force at 6am on 26 December 2021.
This includes information on ventilation, limiting capacity, preventing crowding, cleanliness, noise levels and helping Test, Trace and Protect.
NHS COVID Pass: promotional pack
Information on how businesses and event organisers must check the COVID-19 status of their customers is available on COVID Pass: guidance for businesses and events | GOV.WALES.
The NHS COVID Pass: promotional pack can be downloaded from Gov.Wales. Businesses are encouraged to display and share these posters, images and videos to promote and explain the NHS COVID Pass.
Strengthened measures to keep Wales safe as omicron strikes
New measures will be introduced from 6am on Boxing Day to help keep Wales safe.
The measures are a revised version of alert level two to respond to the new omicron variant and are designed to help keep businesses open and trading and protect customers and staff.
The regulations bring back protections in hospitality businesses, including licensed premises, and in cinemas and theatres when they re-open after the festive period.
Strengthened guidance will be issued to help people stay safe in their own homes and when meeting others.
Read the announcement in full on Gov.Wales.
£5.25m Cultural Winter Stability Fund established
The Welsh Government is making £5.25m available to assist Wales' arts organisations, museums, libraries and independent cinemas through the winter months, the Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport, Dawn Bowden has announced (21 December).
The purpose of this fund is to support organisations that are in genuine difficulty - at risk of closure or that jobs will be lost - unless further support is provided. This risk must be as a direct result of the ongoing impact of Covid-19.
The fund, which will cover the period from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022, opens for applications on Wednesday 12 January 2022 and applicants will need to have submitted an online application no later than the deadline of 5.00 pm on Wednesday 26 January 2022.
Read the announcement in full on Gov.Wales.
Non-Domestic Rates Relief for Businesses in 2022-23
The Welsh Government will be providing an additional £116m package of non-domestic rates relief for businesses in the sectors most directly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Retail, leisure and hospitality ratepayers in Wales will receive 50% non-domestic rates relief for the duration of 2022-23. Like the scheme announced by the UK Government, the Welsh Government’s Retail, Leisure and Hospitality Rates Relief scheme will be capped at £110,000 per business across Wales. The approach means that businesses in Wales will receive comparable support to that provided in other parts of the UK.
Read the announcement in full on Gov.Wales.
Further details are available on:
Wellbeing and Mental Health
These are unprecedented times for us as a society and whether you are self-employed or a business owner, COVID-19 will be causing a level of uncertainty.
Guidance and information on Wellbeing and Mental Health for the business community is available through the Business Wales website.
Useful COVID-19 information
As each premises is different, businesses should read all guidance. This continues to be updated so please check back regularly for the latest information.
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Stay up to date with tourism industry news
We are committed to providing the support and assurance the business community needs during these unprecedented difficult times and have issued several Coronavirus (COVID-19) related bulletins which can be found on the Tourism Industry Coronavirus (COVID-19) Bulletins page.
Business Wales is providing businesses with tailored support and advice about dealing with coronavirus, from financial and supply chain planning to advice on staffing issues. We would advise Tourism businesses and stakeholders in Wales wanting specific guidance to visit the Business Wales website or call Business Wales helpline on 03000 6 03000, and to regularly visit the Public Health Wales website for up-to-date public health information for you, your staff and your visitors.
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