Warning of 'real hardship' amid calls for more support for business operators
North business leader David Richardson has added his voice to calls for more grant aid for business operators and self-employed people who have received no financial support since the coronavirus crisis began.
Mr Richardson, Highlands and Islands development manager for the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), warned of the "real hardship" facing those who are struggling most.
And he stressed that businesses in the Highlands and Islands are not "getting off lightly" through being in level one of Scotland's five-tier system of coronavirus restrictions.
With research indicating that around one in five Scottish operators have received no financial support since the start of the pandemic, FSB Scotland has written to Scotland's finance secretary Kate Forbes, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the leaders of Scotland’s 32 local authorities calling for more grants to be made available to businesses and self-employed people who have missed out.
“The owners of many of our small Highlands and Islands businesses have struggled without support, or adequate support, since this crisis began, and now, during the second spike, we are seeing that the new Scottish restrictions are hurting many more businesses than those forced to close or reduce their hours by law, Mr Richardson said.
"The Highlands and Islands might be in level one, but that does not mean that our businesses are getting off lightly. It’s really tough out there and many need financial support to get them through to the spring.
“FSB Scotland fears that the Scottish Government’s new £30 million funding budget will simply not be enough to help all businesses facing real hardship due to the current round of restrictions.
"Last week, the Fraser of Allander Institute [an independent research unit] estimated that around £1 billion of Scottish Government funding for the 2020/21 financial year remains uncommitted, and we are urging the Scottish Government to allocate whatever is required from this pot to support smaller businesses and the self-employed. If our businesses struggle, our communities struggle – and we must not let either down.
“Specifically, we want support for those facing hardship as an indirect result of the current restrictions on hospitality, not least the suppliers of hospitality and retail businesses, and also for businesses without premises – home and vehicle-based businesses – the directors of small companies, freelancers and those earning less than 50 per cent of their income from self-employment.
“Moreover, rather than restrictions being announced, followed a few weeks later by a trickle of business support, we need more joined-up thinking from our governments, and for fit-for-purpose support to be delivered where it is needed most, quickly and effectively.”
Last month, Mr Richardson said the Scottish Government’s decision to place the west of Scotland in level four was "tragic news" for businesses struggling to survive in that part of the country but that firms in level one areas, such as the Highlands and Islands and Moray, could not feel relaxed about it.
“The Highland economy relies very heavily on markets in the more populous parts of the UK, especially the central belt and England, and the futures of the majority of our businesses, directly or indirectly, are inextricably linked to theirs. If they sneeze, we catch cold," he said.
“With Christmas just around the corner and 2021 in the offing, Highlands and Islands businesses battling for survival in sectors like retail, tourism and hospitality and food and drink desperately need more certainty so that they can prepare.
“The road ahead is undoubtedly rocky, and to make the journey as painless as possible we need a new, rapid, mass-testing system in place to enable more people to travel. We need a new ‘quality assurance’ type system that enables businesses to demonstrate that they are Covid-safe and can open, thereby doing away with the need for blanket sectoral bans. And businesses and their customers need clear, unambiguous, easily followed guidelines."