Scottish Government sets up new fund to help B&Bs which had missed out on earlier coronavirus lockdown grant funds
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A NEW Scottish Government fund has been set up to help B&Bs across the Highlands who had missed out on previous rounds of emergency funding.
Some B&Bs did not qualify for assistance because they did not pay business rates and also could not apply to the Hardship Scheme because they did not have a business bank account.
Kate Forbes, the cabinet secretary for finance, said she hoped this would help some B&B operators who had previously ‘fallen between the cracks’.
The move has been welcome as a 'u-turn' by opposition MSPs, with Highlands and Islands list MSP Edward Mountain saying he hoped the application process would be "as smooth as possible".
Ms Forbes, who is also SNP MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, said the new fund would be welcomed by many, adding: “I am aware that some B&Bs had missed out on previous funding because they didn’t have a business bank account, and I have been working hard behind the scenes to help find a solution.
“As of June 15, such B&Bs can apply to a scheme administered by local authorities for a lump sum of £3000, which was the default amount through the Hardship Scheme. This is specifically for B&B businesses that don’t have a business bank account.
“I realise that many people are facing significant difficulties as we look ahead to a challenging tourist season, and also that this funding will not replace the lost income. I do hope, however, that it offers some help.”
The Scottish Conservative's Mr Mountain said the changes followed "sustained pressure" from his Help Our B&Bs campaign.
He said that hundreds of B&Bs had initially been left without support from the £20m Creative, Tourism and Hospitality Enterprise Hardship Fund because the Scottish Government made having a business bank account a key part of the criteria for applications.
And said he was delighted at the "u-turn".
He said: "At long last there is some business sense from the Scottish Government. I am delighted that this u-turn will mean hundreds of B&Bs will now receive the lifeline support they so desperately need.
"Since I began this campaign I have been contacted by B&Bs in Glencoe, Strathspey, Skye, Aberdeenshire and Dumfries – all have felt let down and abandoned by this Scottish Government.
"Businesses who operate without business bank accounts should never have been ineligible for funding in the first place. If the Cabinet Secretary for Finance had been more aware of the reality of how small businesses operate, then this fiasco could have been prevented from the beginning.
"B&Bs have been made to wait too long for funding and I trust the Scottish Government will now make the application process as smooth as possible so funding can be delivered quickly.”
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