Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Small and medium-sized enterprises have been hit desperately hard by the Covid-19 pandemic. Across the country, business owners have been put to the pin of their collars. Family businesses, which may have gone down through generations, have had to close their doors because of the pandemic. Many of them may never open up again. It is vitally important that we support as many of them as possible to ensure they have the opportunity to recover, whether it is shops, pubs, restaurants or other retail units. These small and medium-sized businesses are the backbone of our towns and cities. It will take time for them to recover. Footfall in our towns may be slow to recover. It is important to support legislation such as this.

It is important that schemes such as the employment wage subsidy scheme, EWSS, and the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, continue to play a role. Certain sectors will struggle to get back up to the level that they need to be at. Aviation is another one affected, as well as small and medium-sized businesses. One category of business which has not received a great deal of support is those without premises. It might involve a minority of businesses but they do exist. As many of them do not have rateable premises, they have not been supported. We need to look at that and ensure they are supported.

Sometimes we do not think of them as businesses but taxis are also a form of small business. In many instances, they have not received the support they need either. When one combines the amount they are entitled to claim and to work, it does not work out as a living wage. That should be taken into account.

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