MP for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey Drew Hendry welcomes new £100 million grant support scheme aimed at helping SMEs and the newly self-employed affected by coronavirus pandemic
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Applications for the Scottish Government’s £100 million package of additional grants for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), and newly self-employed people are now open.
Three separate funds will be administered by local authorities and Scotland’s enterprise agencies, with payments to begin early next month.
They include a £34 million hardship fund for the newly self-employed; a £20 million fund for small and micro enterprises in the creative, tourism and hospitality sectors and £45 million for viable vulnerable SMEs crucial to the Scottish economy.
Drew Hendry, who is also the SNP’s Shadow Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy spokesperson at Westminster, said: “In the Highlands, we have seen our economy hit hard by the Covid-19 crisis, and previously profitable local small and medium-sized businesses have seen demand disappear overnight. This new support will help alleviate some of the hardship those individuals and companies are facing.
“I am particularly pleased that this support will provide much needed help to newly self-employed who do not qualify for the UK’s scheme and are falling through the cracks and facing financial hardship as a result of coronavirus.
“We all need to work to see that Highland businesses get the vital support they need at this difficult time, and these new Scottish Government funds are great news for those who miss out on other financial support.
"Small and micro-sized businesses across the region are the backbone of our local economy, and it is only right that as much help is available to them and their staff as possible.
“I am also pleased to see that the Scottish Government has also recognised the particular impact of Covid-19 on our creative, tourism and hospitality sectors at what would normally be their busiest period.
"Here in the Highlands, we are feeling this harder than other areas of the country as our tourism industry is hit hard by a fall in demand over the coming year. This new fund intends to relieve the hardship of smaller firms that are ineligible for other forms of support. I know this will be welcome to many people in these sectors.
“As well as dealing with this immediate crisis, it is important that we look to the future. Viable and vital businesses across the Highlands play a significant part in strengthening the resilience of Scotland’s wider economy, and they need to survive this crisis and thrive in future. The additional £45 million allocated to support those firms will help ensure their futures.
“I continue to work alongside local Highland businesses and their staff to support their recovery and to understand their needs. Rest assured, I will continue to press the UK Government to further deliver for them.”
