After making repeated calls in recent weeks for the Welsh Government to support small Bed and Breakfast businesses in North Wales, that have warned they are on the verge of collapse due to the Covid-19 pandemic, North Wales Member of the Senedd, Mark Isherwood, today appealed to those in power to provide them with a message of hope.
Mr Isherwood has been fighting hard to get Bed and Breakfast businesses the financial support they desperately need, but so far to no avail.
Taking part in today’s virtual Plenary meeting of the Welsh Parliament, he raised their plight again and make fresh calls for Welsh Government support.
Speaking via ‘Zoom’, he said:
“Although small Bed and Breakfasts are a mainstay of local tourism economies across North Wales, they're ineligible for the Welsh Government's £10,000 Business Grant.
“When I raised this with the Economy Minister, he referred to the eligibility checker for the second phase of the Economic Resilience Fund. When it opened, they were ineligible.
“When I questioned him about this, he said he would have to understand why. I therefore wrote to him with their evidence.
“In his reply he said “the support package in Wales is the most comprehensive and generous in the UK”, yet grants are available to B&B operators in England and Scotland who do not qualify for other Covid-19 grant support, but operators in Wales have been denied equivalent grants.
“What, therefore, is your message for the genuine B&B business operators who have told me their finances have now run out and they can't go on any longer? I hope it's one of hope.”
In his response, the Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Dafydd Elis-Thomas MS, told Mr Isherwood that he would be “happy to review the situation” and I’d be very interested in seeing examples of the businesses that have approached you, so that our officials can talk to them about how we can meet their needs more effectively.”
Speaking after the meeting, Mr Isherwood said: “I will provide the Deputy Minister with examples, as I did with the Economy Minister, Ken Skates, but these businesses do not have time on their side. They need support quickly if they are to have any chance of surviving this pandemic”.
ENDS