Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 8
8
Not Addressed
Three cohorts of COVID-19 business grant schemes announced from 2020 to 2021.
Conclusion
Three schemes announced in March and May 2020 made up the first cohort of grants, linked to the first national lockdown. The three schemes of the second cohort were announced in the second half of 2020, in response to the local and national lockdowns responding to the second wave of COVID-19 infections. The two schemes in the third cohort were announced during 2021, the first supporting business through the national reopening in spring 2021, and the second linked to the Omicron restrictions at the end of 2021.12
Government Response Summary
The government response restates the introduction from the Committee report and provides general information about the COVID-19 grant schemes but does not engage with any specific recommendation.
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
Introduction from the Committee The government introduced a series of grant schemes to help businesses deal with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on their businesses, including the effects of restrictions put in place to protect public health. Using funding from government, local authorities in England distributed £22.6 billion in grants to local businesses between March 2020 and March 2022. There were eight separate schemes that can be grouped into three separate ‘cohorts’, primarily corresponding to significant waves of COVID-19 restrictions. HM Treasury decided the key features of each of the schemes, including the types of businesses they should cover and the level of funding available, and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) was responsible for their implementation. The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is now accountable for this funding, including the recovery of money paid out as a result of error or fraud. The creation and delivery of these grant schemes was a partnership between local authorities and central government. Local authorities were responsible for identifying eligible businesses in their areas and paying grants to them, making 4.5 million payments over the course of the pandemic. BEIS created the detailed guidance for the schemes and oversaw their implementation by local authorities.