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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, for what reasons mental health services were excluded from personal care businesses for the eligibility criteria of the Re-Start Grant.

The Restart Grant scheme aims to support businesses in their local economies to reopen as coronavirus restrictions are eased across the country. Mental health services are out of scope for this scheme as they were not mandated to close during the January Lockdown due to the services they provide being essential to the public.

However, further funding has been made available via the Additional Restrictions Grant to support those businesses that have had their trade adversely affected by the local and national restrictions.

The Additional Restrictions Grant is a discretionary fund and is also administered by Local Authorities to support businesses in the way they see fit. Local Authorities in England have been allocated £2bn in additional funding to provide support that best suits their area.

Businesses should consult their Local Authority to determine whether they might be eligible for Additional Restrictions Grant support.