Government support for businesses impacted by coronavirus (COVID-19)

Business West's hub providing guidance and support on coronavirus (COVID-19) for businesses, employers and employees in the South West of England.

10 Downing Street

LAST UPDATED: 23rd March 2020 08:38

Access information and what you need to do here on the government's support package. 

To keep up to date we recommend you sign-up to receive updates and bookmark this hub in your browser, or you can raise a question via the form about the government's support package.

Rishi Sunak set out a new package designed to support business in the following ways:

  • Government to pay 80% of wages for employees not working, up to £2,500 a month
  • Government backed loans to businesses amounting to £330bn guarantees (15% of GDP), leaving space to go further. This will be delivered in two ways: Large businesses will go through a lending facility set up by the BoE / SMEs will go through the ‘Business Interruption Loan Scheme’ - up to £5 million with no interest for the first 6 months.
  • Covid Bill will be introduced to give powers to provide further financial support. 
  • Support package for airlines and airports. 
  • There will shortly be meetings with business leaders from different sectors to identify specific industry-based needs (including possible regulatory forbearance). 
  • Support for cash flow and fixed costs:- For hospitality, leisure and retail, the government action is sufficient to make insurance claims. All businesses in these sectors will have a business rates holiday. Additional cash grants of £25,000 will also be available. 
  • Grants of £10,000 will be available to the smallest 700,000 businesses.
  • Reimbursing SMEs for time lost due to sickness
  • Local authorities will be compensated for costs and devolved administrations will get at least £3.5bn. 
  • £1bn will go to financial security for the vulnerable. Half a billionth increase in welfare and half a billion to fund local authorities
  • A mortgage holiday for those affected by the virus
  • More announcements will be made to support people’s financial security — working with trade unions and business groups to protect people’s jobs and incomes
  • Whatever resources the NHS needs, it will get

The next stage of the response will be due in the coming days, with execution and operation of these measures done ASAP. 

The 2020 Budget announced the plan to provide support for public services, individuals and businesses affected by Coronavirus, and we're working quickly to clarify how businesses can access these new measures – if you have any questions on these support packages please let us know.

Latest Government Announcement

Government to pay 80% of wages for employees not working, up to £2,500 a month, Chancellor Rishi Sunak says. Plus cafes, pubs and restaurants must close from Friday night, except for take-away food, to tackle coronavirus, Boris Johnson has said, with night clubs, theatres, cinemas, gyms and leisure centres asked to close "as soon as they reasonably can".

Advice from the UK government, includes:

  • Anyone with symptoms of a fever or persistent cough should stay at home for seven days if they live alone, or 14 days if they live with others. Anyone who lives with someone showing coronavirus symptoms should also stay at home for 14 days. 
  • Everyone should stop non-essential contact with others. This is particularly important for people over 70, those with underlying health conditions and pregnant women
  • People should work from home where they can
  • People should avoid places like pubs, clubs and theatres 
  • People should stop all unnecessary travel
  • By the weekend, those with serious health conditions should be shielded from social contact for 12 weeks
  • Schools will close on Friday 20 March to prevent the further spread of coronavirus, except for looking after the children of keyworkers and vulnerable children. Exams will not go ahead.

The content of this page is believed to be correct at the time it was posted but cannot be guaranteed. Please note that any information, findings, conclusions and recommendations that Business West provides will be based on information gathered in good faith from both primary and secondary sources, whose accuracy Business West is not always in a position to guarantee. As such Business West can accept no liability for actions taken based on anything that may subsequently prove to be incorrect.

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