Tag Archive for Coronavirus

Hot Business News Today

Failings revealed in Covid Recovery Loan Scheme

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By Anna Jordan on Small Business – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

A number of problems have been exposed with the government’s Covid Recovery Loan Scheme.

The Times reports that lenders are warning of weak demand for the scheme post-pandemic from small businesses. There are also issues with firms that want to access the state-backed funding.

One banker told the newspaper that the previous Covid-19 emergency funding, totalling around £74bn, had been “too generous”.

The RLS is intended to bridge the gap between the emergency Covid-19 financial support and more normal credit conditions. RLS provides credit up to £10m and comes with an 80 per cent government guarantee for lenders – less generous than the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Bounce Back Loan scheme (BBLS).

>See also: Recovery Loan Scheme up to £10m will replace CBILS and BBLS

However, there is evidence pointing to other issues with the scheme, namely too few accredited lenders and a high number of application rejections. Only 18 providers are accredited by the British Business Bank to distribute the loans.  

Mr Bounce Back, a website discussing Bounce Back Loans, Recovery Loans and the Recovery Loan Scheme, has had “message after message” from firms

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Hot Business News Today

Is my small business exempt if one of my staff is pinged?

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By Timothy Adler on Small Business – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

The government has carved out two major exemptions for workers if they are pinged by the NHS Covid app and have to self-isolate. But is your small business exempt?

First, it has approved a blanket exemption for supermarket depot workers and suppliers to come back to work, despite being alerted by the NHS Covid-19 app that they have been near someone with Covid. This is despite whether they have been vaccinated or not. Instead, they will be allowed to take daily lateral flow tests for seven days instead of self-isolating.

>See also: Do staff have to self-isolate if they’ve been pinged by the NHS Covid app?

Second, the government has announced 16sectors where workers could be exempt from having to self-isolate.

Is my small business exempt from being pinged by NHS Covid app?

Workers in these 16 sectors may be exempt from self-isolation if their work is essential and critical, and if their company applies for permission from the government.

EnergyCivil nuclearDigital infrastructureFood production and supplyWasteWaterVeterinary medicinesChemicalsTransportMedicinesMedical devicesClinical consumable suppliesEmergency servicesBorder controlDefenceLocal government

Frustratingly for small business owner-managers, these are not blanket exemptions — your small business must submit the name of

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