UKHospitality Cymru (UKHC) has welcomed the Welsh Government First Minister’s announcement of new grants that will benefit small and medium-size sector businesses.
The additional support will help eligible closed businesses with their costs up to 31 March 2021. Those with a rateable value of £12,000 or less will receive an extra £4,000 grant payment and firms with a rateable value of between £12,001 and £500,000, will receive £5,000.
Executive Director of UKHospitality Cymru David Chapman said: “The best support we could receive would be the ability to reopen. It was vital that, while businesses are forced to remain closed, they received this support. It will help our pubs, cafes and restaurants and also our smaller hotels across Wales.
“With things so precarious, we could always do with more but it is great that the Welsh Government has listened to us.
“It comes on top of the job-supporting Economic Resilience Sector Specific Fund, which has been a boon for our stricken larger businesses. It will help get them through to the end of the financial year.
“However, as we now know, most of our businesses will still be closed into April, so we are already back in negotiations for a further extension to these funds to help them until viable trading is re-established.
“Remember, reopening is bound to be come with restrictions like social distancing which means viability is a long way off, so it really is vital we get these businesses open as quickly as possible.”
