I am aware that businesses across many sectors, including transport and tourism, are deeply affected by the Covid-19 public health emergency. That is why we have worked to introduce a wide programme of Government supports for impacted businesses. The range of supports available includes new schemes of wage subsidies, rates waivers, re-start grants, lending facilities, equity injection, and business advisory supports for example.
My Department has been engaged with the Tourism sector since February in relation to the impacts of Covid. In addition, with my colleague, Minister of State Griffin, I have established the COVID-19 Tourism Monitoring Group. This group comprises industry stakeholders, the tourism agencies and Departmental officials and has been specifically established to monitor the disruption to the tourism sector and to assist in formulating the sector’s response to the crisis.
Fáilte Ireland’s COVID-19 Business Support Hub also provides a suite of targeted supports for tourism businesses, to enable them to respond to the challenges and threats now being faced in the sector. Any further measures will be considered in the context of the Government’s Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business.
The question of moratorium on business debt would be a matter for my colleague, the Minster for Business, Enterprise and Innovation.