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Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, announced a £12bn package to help safeguard the economy during the coronavirus epidemic.
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The package includes a £5bn cash injection for the NHS
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SMEs will be offered cash grants of up to £25,000
The recently appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, announced his £12bn package to stablise the economy amid the spread of coronavirus as ‘temporary, timely and targeted.’
The measures include a £5bn injection for the NHS to head with the control and treatment of the disease and a pledge to help small businesses struggling in this current climate.
The leisure industry has been hit the hardest with retailers, restaurants, events, stadiums and more, seeing an astronomical decrease in footfall, forces shut downs or complete cancellation.
To help manage this, the Chancellor promised business rates to be scrapped for a year for a large part of the economy, covering retailers, pubs, clubs, theatres and restaurants. Sunak offered cash grants of up to £25,000 for small and medium-sized businesses in the most affect areas.
The chancellor’s headline policy offered £330bn of loans and loan guarantees for business hit by the coronavirus is equivalent to 15% of GDP.
Nic Redfern, finance director of KnowYourMoney.co.uk (now Nerd Wallet), commented:
“The Chancellor is clearly trying to live up to the government’s promise to do “whatever it takes” to help businesses survive the coronavirus crisis. And these latest measures are certainly positive, but time is of the essence. The government must ensure that there are no delays in getting cash to businesses – promises of cash and support are one thing, but if takes too long to come to fruition then many businesses will collapse.
“Ultimately, the government is acting and new measures are being introduced each day, which must be praised. An evolving strategy will clearly be important; the pandemic is a long-term issue, so it is vital that business leaders and employees receive ongoing support. What might seem reasonable now can quickly become insufficient.”
