Rishi Sunak announces £127m business support allocation for the north

The British Government moved to provide the support only after it was announced by the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson that England was to move to a strict lockdown until mid-February.

According to the British Treasury the cash will be provided on a per-property basis to support businesses through the latest restrictions in England and is expected to benefit over 600,000 business properties, worth £4 billion in total across all nations of the UK.

Mr. Sunak said business support is a devolved matter so it is up to the Executive to distribute the £127m in the north.

In England one-off top-ups will be granted to closed businesses as follows: £4,000 for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 or under; £6,000 for businesses with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000; and £9,000 for businesses with a rateable value of over £51,000

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: "The new strain of the virus presents us all with a huge challenge - and whilst the vaccine is being rolled out, we have needed to tighten restrictions further.

"Throughout the pandemic we’ve taken swift action to protect lives and livelihoods and today we’re announcing a further cash injection to support businesses and jobs until the Spring.

"This will help businesses to get through the months ahead – and crucially it will help sustain jobs, so workers can be ready to return when they are able to reopen.

"A further £594 million is also being made available for Local Authorities and the Devolved Administrations to support other businesses not eligible for the grants, that might be affected by the restrictions. Businesses should apply to their Local Authorities."