Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many game rearing businesses have applied to the Government for financial assistance during the covid-19 outbreak; and how much funding from the public purse has been allocated to help protect that industry during the covid-19 outbreak.
Game-rearing businesses play an important role in our rural economy. As with other businesses they have, where eligible, been able to apply for public support through the various Covid-19-related Government schemes including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, business rates relief, the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme. Defra does not hold a record of the nature of businesses applying for these schemes and is therefore unable to provide details of the number of game-rearing businesses in receipt of support and the amounts paid from the public purse.