Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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483. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the assistance given to facilitate small shop owners to recover after the Covid-19 pandemic, with particular reference to those that did not qualify for a Covid-19 payment; if alleviation of rates, VAT returns or other provisions are being considered to ensure that they are not forced to close permanently in view of their viability before the lockdown; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9456/20]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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As Chair of the Retail Consultation Forum, I am acutely aware that Covid-19 has brought particular challenges for retailers - large and small, across the country. It is a particularly difficult time for retailers who have had to close their doors in the interest of public health and adherence to the public health guidelines

In order to assist businesses to address the challenges posed by COVID-19, the Government has put in place a comprehensive suite of supports for firms of all sizes, which includes the wage subsidy scheme, grants, low-cost loans, write-off of commercial rates and deferred tax liabilities.

These supports are designed to build confidence, to further assist businesses in terms of the management of their companies and to allow them to begin looking to the future and start charting a path forward for weeks and months ahead. For a full list of supports for business please see

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For small shop owners, the Covid-19 Loan, available from Microfinance Ireland (MFI), which was introduced as a support to microenterprises to help them access funding arising from the Covid-19 crisis, is of particular help. The MFI loans are available for eligible microenterprises responding to Covid-19-related difficulties, the negative impact of which must be a minimum of 15% of actual or projected income or profit.  Loans up to €50,000 are available with terms that include a six months interest free and repayment free moratorium, with the loan to then be repaid over the remaining 30 months of the 36-month loan period. 

An interest rate to 4.5% applies on the Covid-19 loans provided by MFI.  This reduced rate is available to all micro-enterprises where the application is made through the Local Enterprise Network or referred by a bank or Local Development Committees. The new rate for direct applications to MFI is reduced to 5.5%.As these loans are available interest free for the first six months, the net effect is to further reduce the net interest rate payable over the period of the loan.  

Government has agreed a new €2 billion COVID-19 Credit Guarantee Scheme is a further development of the existing Credit Guarantee Scheme already available.  This Scheme forms a major component of the government’s strategy to aid SMEs in these difficult times by providing critical support to ensure businesses are facilitated in having access to credit facilities to assist a return to a more regular trading environment.  It will provide an 80% guarantee on lending to SMEs until the end of this year, for terms between 3 months and 6 years.  The guarantee will be able to be used for a wide range of lending products between €10,000 and €1 million that have a maximum term of 6 years or less.

The Scheme will be available to all SME sectors, including primary producers.  It will also have interest rates below current market rates.  The implementation of this Scheme will require primary legislation, the drafting of which has commenced.

There are a number of liquidity supports for COVID 19 impacted businesses available now, including the existing Credit Guarantee Scheme which was implemented in 2012, supporting loans up to €1 million for periods of up to 7 years.  The scheme is designed to support a range of debt products appropriate to the borrowing needs of SMEs.An application to access the Credit Guarantee Scheme can be made through one of the participating lenders which are currently Allied Irish Banks, Bank of Ireland and Ulster Bank Ireland.

The Government agreed details of a further support which will give direct grant aid to micro and small businesses to help them with the costs associated with reopening and reemploying workers following COVID-19 closures. The Restart Grant will be available to businesses with a turnover of less than €5m and employing 50 people or less, which were closed or impacted by at least a 25% reduction in turnover out to 30 June 2020. It is a contribution towards the cost of re-opening or keeping a business operational and re-connecting with employees and customers. The grants will be equivalent to the rates bill of the business in 2019, with a minimum payment of €2,000 and a maximum payment of €10,000. 

If a company is currently in a rateable premise but was not rate-assessed in 2019 it is still eligible to apply. The local authority can pay the grant based on an estimate of what the rates demand for 2019 would have been. Applications for the Restart Grant can be made online directly to local authorities and further information is available on the application form.  If there are queries that are not on the application form, businesses can contact the Business Support Unit in each local authority.

All information including the application form will be available on the local authority website, the details of which are at the following link: .

The growth in demand for shopping online domestically and globally is driving the retail sector more broadly to develop its online capability in order to enhance its competitiveness. Trading online is a very important route for retail businesses to grow and improve their business in the current crisis and will be an important element in their recovery over the longer term. In April of this year support was increased for two online trading initiatives to a total of €7.6m: Trading Online Vouchers for micro enterprises in partnership with the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, Richard Bruton TD; and a special Covid-19 Online Retail Scheme for indigenous retailers with 10 or more employees administered by Enterprise Ireland.

Firstly, in conjunction with Minister Bruton's Department of Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, I have increased support for the Trading Online Voucher Scheme which is available to all micro enterprises with up to 10 employees, including those in the retail sector through the Local Enterprise Office network nationwide. The €2,500 Trading Online Vouchers are a key government support to help small and micro enterprises, with very limited or no e-commerce presence, to get online, boost their sales and reach new markets – particularly during this difficult period, when so many small businesses are closed to the public. Flexibilities to the Trading Online Voucher scheme are now in place allowing businesses apply for a second voucher where they have successfully utilised their first one, which brings the overall total voucher amount available up to €5,000 for each eligible business.  Further details about the expanding Trading Online Voucher Scheme are available at

The Covid-19 Online Retail Scheme, which closed for applications on 27 May 2020, is complementary to the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) Trading Online Voucher Scheme. The objective of the Scheme, administered by Enterprise Ireland, is to support companies in the indigenous retail sector which have started an online journey, which will have the most immediate impact enabling them to respond to both domestic and international consumer demand with a competitive online offer.

My Department has introduced this Scheme in response to the COVID-19 crisis and the urgent need for retail companies to achieve a step change in online capability. Applicant companies must employ 10 or more people, have an existing online presence (e.g. website or social media), and have a retail outlet through which they derive the majority of their revenue. Successful applicants will be awarded funding to support a maximum of 80% of the project costs. Grants ranging from €10,000 to €40,000 will be awarded under the competitive scheme.

This Scheme is not about taking the first steps; it is about raising the bar, in an informed, planned and strategic way.  The total fund size will be up to €2 million under this call. Further details on this Scheme available at

I am committed to supporting the needs of the retail sector at this time and in developing their online capability and enhancing their competitiveness.

The Temporary Wage Support Scheme (TWSS) is provided for in section 28 of the recently enacted Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020.  Deputies will be aware that the TWSS is an emergency measure to deal with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy and in particular to support employment relationships which were already in place before the commencement of the scheme.  

The underlying legislation and the scheme itself were developed quickly, having regard to the urgent Government objective of getting much needed assistance to employers and employees, where businesses have been seriously affected by the pandemic and the necessary restrictions introduced as a result of the Public Health Emergency.

The TWSS can only operate in respect of an employee, whether full-time or part-time, who was on the payroll of the employer as at 29 February 2020.  The TWSS builds on data returned to Revenue through its real-time PAYE system. The core principles of the scheme are that:

- the business is suffering significant negative economic impact due to the pandemic,

- the employees in respect of whom the wage subsidy is claimed were included on the employer’s payroll on 29 February 2020, and

- the February 2020 payroll submissions were submitted to Revenue before, in general, 15 March 2020 but recently extended, by concession, to 1 April 2020.

The latter two conditions were particularly designed with a view to preventing abuse of the scheme.

While the issue of Commercial Rates is a policy matter for the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, I can inform you that, on 2 May, the Government announced that commercial rates are being waived for a three-month period beginning on 27 March for businesses that have been forced to close due to public health requirements.

The Government will continue to actively engage with business owners and representative bodies. Local Authorities, who have longstanding experience in dealing with ratepayers and showing an understanding of their financial situations, are assessing the impact of COVID-19 by engaging directly with individual ratepayers, recognising that there may be impacts on sectors outside of those initially identified as being most under threat.

Furthermore, my Department will continue to monitor the issue and engage with other Departments, in particular the Department of Housing Planning and Local Government, to ensure there is continued support to business in this regard. The position will remain under review as part of a wider review of options to support enterprises and employment, and associated local authority funding implications, once the unwinding of public health restrictions has advanced.

Issues relating to taxation are a matter for my colleague the Minister for Finance who has announced that ‘deferred’ tax liabilities will be warehoused for a period of 12 months from the time when restrictions are eased for the sector the business operates in. Interest will not accrue during this 12-month period. This represents a very significant boost of liquidity for businesses of all sizes across the country.  It is estimated that by the end of April approximately €800m in payments relating to the first quarter had been deferred.

I am also informed that Revenue also announced a suspension of interest and late payment charges on tax debts for SMEs automatically and for larger businesses by arrangement. Tax clearance status will be maintained for businesses entering into these arrangements. Furthermore, all enforcement action has been ceased until further notice.

After the twelve-month period, the interest will be charged at the very much reduced rate of 3% and the timeframe to pay off this debt will be flexible and will be determined by the ability of the business to pay both COVID-19 related debts as well as meet its ongoing liabilities as they arise. Information and guidance for taxpayers and agents on VAT, can be found on the Revenue website at:

Finally, it is important that all businesses check for the latest information, public health advice and guidelines from Government in relation to Covid-19.

I can assure the Deputy that I continue to work with my colleagues across Government to examine further appropriate supports to assist businesses impacted by Covid-19.