Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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5. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the additional supports being considered for the hospitality sector in view of the extended restrictions on the industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10910/21]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I am acutely aware of the difficulties that the necessary ongoing Covid-19 restrictions are putting on businesses right across the country. The hospitality sector has been one of the industries hardest hit.

With this in mind the Government has put in place a comprehensive package to help businesses and workers during the pandemic, including the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme, the Pandemic Unemployment Payment, the COVID-19 Restrictions Support Scheme, low-cost loans, the deferral and warehousing of tax liabilities and the waiver of commercial rates.

The hospitality sector can avail of the supports outlined above, in particular the COVID-19 Restrictions Support Scheme. This scheme is administered by the Revenue Commissioners on behalf of the Department of Finance. The Government has this week decided to extend the EWSS, the CRSS, the PUP and the rates waiver for impacted businesses to the end of June 2021.

Recently, I announced a new €60m Scheme, called the COVID-19 Business Aid Scheme that is being developed to provide grants to businesses ineligible for the Government’s other existing schemes and to help with fixed costs.

Businesses will be required to be in receipt of a rates bill from their local authority for their business in order to qualify for CBAS. The intention behind this provision is that they assist businesses operating from fixed premises to meet some of the ongoing fixed costs of maintaining those premises.

The Government is very much open to proposals as to how we can help businesses further. However, our schemes are there to help meet fixed costs that cannot be avoided and to provide basic weekly income support up to maximum of €350 per week. We are not providing compensation for loss of personal income above this level or compensation for loss of profits for any sector.