Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 June 2020
347. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the reason small businesses which were employing two or three persons and are reopening now as a start up on a self-employed basis with no employees are not eligible for the restart grant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12709/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn Friday, May 15th, 2020 the Government announced details of the new €250m Restart Grant providing direct grant aid to micro and small businesses. The grant is a contribution towards the cost of re-opening or keeping a business operational and re-connecting with employees and customers.
To avail of the Restart Grant, applicants must be a commercial business and be in the Local Authorities’ Commercial Rates Payment System, and:
- have a turnover of less than €5m and have 50 or less employees.
- have suffered a projected 25%+ loss in revenue from 1st April 2020 to 30th June 2020.
- commit to remain open or to reopen if it was closed.
- declare the intention to retain employees that are benefitting from the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS).
The primary objective, therefore, is to get funding into small businesses that:
- Are reliant solely on local trading income;
- Are financially independent from any group structure;
- Have suffered significant financial losses;
- Have had to bear ongoing fixed costs or faced costs associated with re-opening the business;
- Provide local paid employment.
In that context, a company with no employees who pays commercial rates and meets the other criteria as outlined above is eligible to apply for the Restart Grant. The grant will be the amount of the rates demand in respect of calendar year 2019 only, subject to a minimum of €2,000 and a maximum of €10,000.
Applications for the Restart Grant can be made online directly to local authorities and further information is available on the application form. If there are queries that are not addressed on the application form, businesses can contact the Business Support Unit in each local authority.
The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection on 25 June announced that the Department’s Enterprise Support Grant will be made available to assist self-employed recipients who are exiting the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) scheme with a once-off grant of up to €1,000 to re-start their business. This will provide business owners with a once-off grant of up to €1,000 to re-start their business. A fund of €12m has been allocated for the extension of this grant. The grant will be payable to self-employed micro enterprises which employ fewer than 10 people, have an annual turnover of less than €1 million and are not eligible for support from the COVID 19 Business Restart Grant or other similar business reopening grants.
