Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his timescale is for (a) allocating and (b) disbursing Small Business Grants Fund for businesses in Shared Spaces funding to (i) local authorities and (ii) Hull City Council; and what plans the Government has to provide guidance to local authorities on allocation of grants from that fund.

The Discretionary Grants Fund, announced on 1^st May, provides Local Authorities in England with up to £617m additional funding to provide grants to businesses which are ineligible for the existing Small Business Grand Fund, and Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grants Fund due to the way that they interact with the business rates system.

It is the Government’s intention that the following businesses should be considered as a priority for these funds:

• Businesses in shared offices;
• Regular market traders who do not have their own business rates assessment;
• B&Bs which pay Council Tax instead of business rates; and
• Charity properties in receipt of charitable business rates relief which would otherwise have been eligible for Small Business Rates Relief or Rural Rate Relief.

Detailed guidance for Local Authorities on how to administer this Fund was published on 13^th May, and is available on gov.uk

Local Authorities should first use expected underspends in their allocations from the existing grant funds to pay for these discretionary grants. However, where Local Authorities have insufficient underspends to pay for the Discretionary Grants Fund, they will receive additional funds by early June.