Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether market traders will be able to make retrospective claims for earnings lost whilst they were ineligible for the coronavirus Small Business Grant Fund.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
Market traders are eligible for a £10,000 grant from the Small Business Grant Fund if they occupied a business property that was in receipt of Small Business Rates Relief on 11th March 2020.
In addition, market traders may also be eligible for a grant worth £10,000 or £25,000 from the Retail, Hospitality, and Leisure Grant Fund, even if they were not in receipt of Small Business Rates Relief. They will be eligible if they have their own business rates assessment, if they occupy a property used for the sale of goods to visiting members of the public (or for other purposes listed in the published guidance on the expanded retail discount for business rates), and if their property has a rateable value of under £51,000.
For market traders without their own business rates assessment, the Discretionary Grants Fund, launched on 1st May 2020, provided up to an additional £617m to allow Local Authorities to make grants to businesses in this situation (alongside other types of business).
Market traders may also be eligible to receive income support via a grant from the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme, or be able to access support from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, depending on their personal circumstances.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether market traders who occupy sub-leases will be given compensation for business rates paid by their landlord included in their rent.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Business rates relief is provided to the relevant ratepayer. In cases where the ratepayer is the landlord, it is for them and their tenants to resolve how that is distributed.
The Government is aware that some small businesses have found themselves excluded from the existing business rates relief and grants schemes because of the way they interact with the business rates system. That is why the Government has allocated up to an additional £617 million to Local Authorities to enable them to give discretionary grants to businesses in this situation.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of the State for Education on the (a) adequacy of funding for and (b) operation of the free school meal voucher scheme.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
During this period, we are asking schools to support pupils eligible for benefits-related free school meals by providing meals or food parcels through their existing food providers wherever possible. The national voucher scheme provides an alternative with costs covered by the Department for Education. Schools are able to order a single voucher to the value of £15 each week for every child eligible for benefits-related free school meals who is not attending school. This is more generous than the weekly amount provided to schools for provision of free school meals, recognising that families will not buy in bulk and therefore will not be able to achieve the same economies of scale.
Voucher codes are being processed and many thousands of families are redeeming them. As of Tuesday 12 May, Edenred reported that more than £70 million worth of voucher codes have been redeemed into supermarket e-gift cards by schools and families.