Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I can give the Deputy further information about his constituency in the context of how the counties are drawing down the other supports he mentioned. Looking at Offaly and Laois collectively, there are now 379 employers participating in the employment wage subsidy scheme. There are 4,056 employees of those 379 employers participating in the scheme. I raise that because that is the other way in which we are trying to help, for example, the suppliers to whom Deputy Cowen refers. In terms of expanding the eligibility for the CRSS programme to include people who are indirectly affected by Covid-19 but not forced to close their premises, the CRSS is designed to support businesses that are broadly closed. I hope that the employment wage subsidy scheme is of help to the suppliers of whom the Deputy spoke. Of course, the greatest help we could give to them is to have their customers open and trading, whereby they are in a position to trade with them as normal.

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