Coronavirus: Wording of grant scheme ‘accidentally cuts off thousands of firms from support’ says ex-economy minister

Simon Hamilton, an ex-DUP MLA who served as both finance minister and as economy minister in the Northern Ireland Executive, has today publicly drawn attention to what he believes is an oversight in the way the rules of the aid scheme have been worded.

He was one of several signatories to an open letter which has been sent to his successor in the Department for the Economy, DUP MLA Diane Dodds.

The letter has also been sent to the health minister Robin Swann (UUP), and finance minister Conor Murphy (SF).

Mr Hamilton signed the open letter in his role as chief executive of the Belfast Chamber of Commerce (a post he took last year after resigning from the DUP).

The other signatories are the presidents / chief executives of the following chambers: Holywood, Lisburn, Bangor, Omagh, Causeway, Ballymena, Newtownards, Newry and Londonderry.

In addition, the CEOs of Enterprise NI and Social Enterprise NI likewise signed it.

The whole matter dates back to March 17, when Tory chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled government plans to shore up many hard-hit businesses.

One of his schemes is called the Small Business Support Grant Scheme

It was brought into being in Northern Ireland about a week-and-a-half after the chancellor’s announcement and, according to the rules laid out by Mr Sunak, it offers grants of £10,000 to all businesses which are eligible for something called ‘Small Business Rate Relief’.

This relief is automatically applied to businesses whose premises have a rateable value below £15,000 (with a handful of exceptions like car parks or empty buildings).

The government had estimated that in Northern Ireland, around 27,000 businesses would be able to get a £10,000 grant.

However, the open letter from the business leaders to the three Executive ministers says the plan as written excludes any small businesses which operate out of “serviced offices” - that is, office premises run by firms like Regus and Glandore, which rent out floorspace to other businesses.

The letter goes on to say that whilst small businesses in this position still pay rates “as part of an overall charge to their landlord” (ie, the serviced office companies), they do not have individual rates accounts themselves, and so are ineligible for the £10,000 grant.

It also adds that social enterprises and charities (which are often also technically registered as companies) are not eligible because they are exempt from rates.

Mr Hamilton told the News Letter: “I don’t think it’s a deliberate omission by the Executive.

“We’ve had quite a few people in Belfast Chamber talk to us about it.

“I think there are hundreds in the city alone [Belfast]. And from talking to other local chambers of commerce across Newry, Londonderry, Causeway and elsewhere, they’re similarly reporting hundreds in their neck of the woods as well.

“So I think if you total it up its certainly not hundreds, it’s thousands of businesses I think who’d be in that type of work environment who are losing out.”

It was put to him that this was a strong criticism of a DUP colleague, Diane Dodds, to which he replied she is a “former colleague” adding: “It’s not a criticism. It’s an understanding of the immense challenge the Executive faces.”

He welcomed the help so far, but said that “in the haste to make a decision and get an announcement around the grant scheme that every aspect and angle of it hadn’t been considered”.

In addition, a scheme for leisure, retail and tourism firms to receive £25,000 grants is still not up and running at time of writing.

Details on both the £10,000 grants and £25,000 grants can be found at this government website.

Mr Hamilton said: “I think there’s an understanding that making the announcement and getting them up and running can take some time. But time is of the essence [given] the cash flow problems of businesses.

“I think the quicker that support can get out there, the better.”

When it comes to the aftermath of the crisis, he said: “There’s no doubt that on the far side of all of this, society – and that includes the economy – are going to facing a very different set of circumstances, and I think that will require equally a collective effort right across politics, across business, across society, to grapple with the fallout of all of this which I think could be quite significant”.

The Department for the Economy issued the following statement: “[We] would like to thank the local chambers for their correspondence.

“While there are currently a number of business support schemes available it is recognised that these do not suit everyone. Departmental officials will continue to explore additional measures of support and will consider all the issues raised within the letter and issue a response in due course.”

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