Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of making a financial support package available to the nightlife industry before it can reopen from 21 June 2021.

The Government understands that the nightlife industry has been acutely impacted by the pandemic. It has delivered support to this sector over the past year through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), VAT and business rates relief, a moratorium on evictions to protect commercial tenants, cash grants to protect businesses, extensions to the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), and ‘Pay as You Grow’ options for businesses which have taken out loans through BBLS, giving a longer repayment period and allowing further flexibility on repayments.

As restrictions ease and the economy is gradually and safely reopened, the Government will carefully tailor the level of support to individuals and businesses to reflect the changing circumstances. The Budget on 3 March outlined the next stage in the Government’s Plan for Jobs including on economic support to protect jobs and livelihoods across the UK. Measures businesses in the nightlife industry will benefit from include:

• The CJRS, which has supported over 1.6 million jobs in the hospitality sector, has been extended until the end of September 2021.
• New Restart Grants – a one off cash grant of up to £18,000 for hospitality and leisure businesses in England.
• Local Authorities (in England) have been given an additional £425 million of discretionary funding to support local businesses. This builds on the £1.6 billion discretionary funding which Local Authorities in England have already received.
• Eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors in England will benefit from business rates relief worth over £6 billion in 21-22.
• A new UK-wide Recovery Loan Scheme to make available loans between £25,001 and £10 million, and asset and invoice finance between £1,000 and £10 million, to help businesses of all sizes through the next stage of recovery.
• Extension to the VAT cut to 5% for hospitality, accommodation and tourism until the end of September across the UK. To help businesses manage the transition back to the standard 20% rate, a 12.5% rate will apply for the subsequent six months until 31 March 2022.

The Government is continuing to collect evidence on the impact of the pandemic on the nightlife industry and is committed to working with businesses and representative groups to inform our efforts to support it.