Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
UPDATED: There are now over a million business premises shut down across the UK, according to the Federation of Small Businesses.
Many of these small businesses have “no cash reserves left”, according to the FSB, having invested heavily in making themselves Covid secure.
Meanwhile, business group UK Hospitality said that the sector has been “effectively shut down” from today, following yesterday’s widening of Tier 4 restrictions to much of the rest of Britain, which limits pubs, cafes and restaurants to takeaway only.
Three quarters of the population of England are now living under Tier 4 rules, which also require non-essential retailers such as clothing and homeware stores, gyms and hair and beauty salons to close.
>See also: Which small businesses can stay open in Tier 4 lockdown?
Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UK Hospitality, has called for new support grants and the extension of the reduced VAT rate and the business rates holiday beyond March if the government wants to avoid “hundreds and thousands of job losses”.
On Tuesday, FSB chairman Mike Cherry wrote to Rishi Sunak proposing a five-point package including converting Covid emergency debt into shares for small business employees, another round of grants and a German-style