Last night the Prime Minister announced that the UK would enter national lockdown for the third time after the country has seen a surge in both the number of cases and deaths.

The new £4.6bn funding package is for businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, and more than 600,000 business properties are expected to benefit from this, with each one-off top up grant worth up to £9,000 per property.

The support package aims at helping businesses get through the Spring period. It is expected to work alongside the furlough scheme to help sustain jobs, ensuring that employees can be ready to return when businesses are able to reopen.

Key points about this £4.6bn lockdown grant funding

• The funding is for closed businesses
• To be allocated based on the property’s rateable value:
  • £4,000 for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 or under
  • £6,000 for businesses with a rateable value is between £15,000 and £51,000
  • £9,000 for businesses with a rateable value of more than £51,000

Apart from the grant scheme above which is specifically for businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, the Chancellor also announced a £594m discretionary fund to support other businesses affected by this third national lockdown. This will be distributed by local authorities and further details are expected to follow later.