Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein)
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4. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will allow rural-based businesses, such as a lawnmower repair businesses, to opt for the Covid restrictions support scheme if a significant portion of their customers are unable to travel to their premises due to travel restrictions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17744/21]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I am keenly aware that businesses are continuing to make massive sacrifices to protect their communities and I am committed to ensuring that the Government will offer as much assistance and support as possible. My Department has worked to ensure that appropriate supports are in place, please see attached link for further details on the various schemes available: Government supports for COVID-19 impacted businesses - DETE (enterprise.gov.ie)

As part of Budget 2021, the COVID Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS), is operational through Revenue and offers a targeted, timely and temporary sector-specific support to businesses forced to close or trade at significantly reduced levels due to COVID of up to €5,000 per week. You may wish to contact my colleague the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe T.D. in relation to your query on the Covid restrictions support scheme as remit for this scheme lies with the Department of Finance.

The Government's Small Business Assistance Scheme for Covid (SBASC) may be of relevance to the businesses that are not eligible for the CRSS. Applicant businesses to the SBASC are required to operate from a building, or similar fixed physical structure on which business rates are payable. Where the rate account is addressed to a landlord for one or more tenant businesses the grant must be applied for and paid to the operating business in each case. The intention behind this provision is to assist businesses operating from fixed premises to meet some of the ongoing fixed costs of maintaining those premises.