Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what support is available to pubs affected by the covid-19 lockdown restrictions.

There is a significant package of financial support currently available to pubs to help with the difficulties caused by Covid-19 and the associated social distancing measures the Government has put in place. The wide range of schemes include:

• Grants under the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund (RHGLF) and the Small Business Grant Fund (SBGF) for eligible businesses;
• Government-backed loans through schemes such as the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS);
• Access to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) to furlough workers, which will continue in its current form until 31 July and then in a more flexible form from August until 31 October;
• A business rates holiday for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses for the 2020 to 2021 tax year; and
• The option to defer VAT payments due between 20 March and 30 June until 31 March 2021.

We continue to keep our support for pubs under review and to engage with the sector.