Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what support is available to businesses forced to close as a result of staff shortages from employees self-isolating following a notification from the NHS Test and Trace app.

As of 16 August, fully vaccinated individuals in England are exempt from self-isolation. They are instead advised to take a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test following a notification from the NHS COVID-19 app or a call from NHS Test and Trace. Those who are not yet fully vaccinated and those who test positive for COVID-19 are still required to self-isolate following a notification from the app or a call from NHS Test and Trace.

Daily contact testing (DCT) was also introduced to further support businesses in critical sectors, such as energy and food supply, and help them remain open. DCT enables employees to take a supervised test at their workplace every day instead of self-isolating. This has helped to minimise disruption to critical sectors and ensured staff are not put at risk.

Throughout the pandemic, the Government has provided unprecedented support to businesses and employees, such as through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. In England, the Government has provided £25 billion through cash grants, including through Restart Grants of £18,000 per business premises and over £2 billion in discretionary grant funds made available to local authorities to provide support in their local areas.

Eligible businesses have also not had to pay business rates in the 15 months to 30 June 2021. Most businesses continue to receive 66% relief for the remainder of the year.