Call for more help for Covid-hit businesses

BUSINESS leaders have called for extra help for firms struggling with the impact of the latest wave of Covid-19 cases, with the head of the borough’s biggest business group saying: “Is that it?”

Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced just before Christmas that businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors would be able to tap into grants of £6,000 per premises, with £100 million more through local authorities for other companies.

But Andrew Denniff, chief executive of Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber of Commerce, said the measures didn’t go far enough.

“Whilst these measures will provide some respite to some of those businesses who have been hit hardest, there has to be additional funding for hospitality and leisure businesses that need support in the face of this increasingly difficult and key trading period,” he said.

“There must be much more clarity and we must ensure that these grants are paid out swiftly to help those deal with the next few weeks.

“These amounts will hardly touch the sides and I would hate to keep having to say: ‘Is that it?’

“I sincerely hope these measures are just a starting point and further, regular reviews are made and responded to, especially if restrictions persist or are tightened further, then we would need to see a much wider support package, at least equal to the scale of any new measures, put in place.”

South Yorkshire mayor Dan Jarvis also criticised the fact the support had taken so long to be announced, adding: “It beggars belief that we are still having to argue for these things almost two years into this pandemic.”

Lucy Nickson, interim chair of the South Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership, said companies needed a helping hand and called on the government to consider a range of measure.

“We need the government to look at all the options, from VAT rate cuts, business rate relief, delays to the hike in National Insurance, to increased support to local government, more flexible repayment of Covid loans, and sorting out sick pay.

“We need them to match that with timely, consistent messaging and to make sure no sectors are left behind.”