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THE GOVERNMENT SCHEME that provides a cash sum to companies forced to close due to Covid-19 restrictions has disbursed 79.3 million euros to 13,800 stores so far.
According to the scheme, companies can claim up to € 5,000 per week of income, but only 3% of the premises are receiving the maximum amount.
So far, 20% of applicants have been from wet bars, 12% from cafes or restaurants, and 21% from personal services such as hairdressers and beauticians.
However, hairdressers and beauticians only account for 6% of the 79 million euros spent so far, compared to 12% for wet bars.
The amounts paid to locals in each county under the scheme.
Source: Income
On October 13, the government announced the Covid Restrictions Support Plan (CRSS) as part of the 2021 budget.
It is a cash flow support scheme aimed at companies that have had to close or restrict access to customers under improved restrictions. A week after the plan was announced, Ireland was subjected to Level 5 restrictions, forcing thousands of companies to close their doors again.
A company that had experienced an 80% decrease in turnover, calculated with reference to its 2019 turnover, during the closing period was eligible to apply.
Only companies with an annual turnover of less than 2 million euros were eligible for the scheme, and eligible companies were entitled to 10% on the first million euros of turnover and 5% on any value greater than a maximum value of 5,000 euros.
Once it has been paid, the money can be used to pay the rent and any other costs associated with the business.
Following their announcement, Tánaiste and Enterprise Minister Leo Varadkar said that the qualification for the scheme is based on self-assessment, but that “there will be audits.”
“It is a self-assessment, so we are very confident that employers will tell us the truth about their position. It’s self-assessed, but obviously there will be audits after the fact, ”he said.
The move was welcomed by business groups like the Irish Vintners Federation, whose members have been closed for much of this year to date.
However, the scope of the plan has also been criticized by the opposition.
Last month, Sinn Féin company spokeswoman Louise O’Reilly said the “narrow nature” of the scheme meant that vendors, event management companies, taxi drivers and many others “would fail with the scheme.”
“The Tánaiste agreed to examine some of the individual cases that I raised, but a broader reform of the scheme is needed to immediately expand the CRSS and ensure that it accommodates as many suffering businesses as possible,” he said.
According to Revenue, which administers the scheme, said that “as of November 17, an eligible business if it is registered with Revenue for CRSS and conducts business from a premise located in a region that is subject to restrictions related to Covid-19, you can make a payment claim under the CRSS ”.
By county, Dublin had the highest number of locals filing claims under the scheme with 2,720 out of 13,800 to date. So far, € 26 million has been awarded to companies in Dublin under the CRSS.
Next is Cork, with 1,710 claimants who have received € 8.7 million so far, and 950 companies in Kerry have received € 5 million.
The average period they have been applying for the CRSS is six weeks, which corresponds to six weeks of Level 5 restrictions.
Most companies (69%) receive an average weekly payment of € 999 or less.
Another 14% receive between 1,000 and 1,999 euros.
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Revenues also provided the average weekly pay by sector:
- Personal services, such as hairdressing – € 260
- Wet pubs – € 570
- Cafe, restaurant – € 1270
- Bars serving food – € 1,750
- Specialized retail store – € 930
- Hotels and accommodation – € 2,290
- Other sectors – € 1,550
The average payment under the scheme is about 1,000 euros.
On Thursday, the Tánaiste said that all businesses that reopen this week would receive an additional week from CRSS to “help you recover.”
All businesses that reopen this week will receive a bonus week from CRSS pay to help you recover. Thank you for all the sacrifices you have made to keep us safe.
– Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) December 3, 2020
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