Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he plans to take to support (a) small businesses and (b) the high street to recover from the covid-19 outbreak.
The Government has announced a package of support for businesses to help with their ongoing business costs in recognition of the disruption caused by Covid-19. In particular, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has been working across Government to provide £12.33 billion of grant funding to help small and rural businesses and businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors manage their cashflow through this period. This support will take the form of two grant funding schemes, the Small Business Grant Fund (SBGF) and the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund (RHLGF).
Small Business Grant Fund (SBGF):
Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund (RHLGF):
Through Section 82 of the Coronavirus Act 2020, the Government has also made provision for a three-month moratorium on the ability of landlords of commercial properties to exercise any right of forfeiture that they may have due to the non-payment of rent by tenants. The provision delays the right to forfeiture; it does not otherwise impinge on a landlord’s right to claim forfeiture at the end of that period. The objective of the clause is to provide much-needed certainty to those businesses hit hard by the Coronavirus and worried about security of tenure during this difficult period. The moratorium is in effect until 30 June, a period that can be extended by Government if necessary.