A further £1.9m has been secured to help Liverpool city region business that have been affected by the pandemic with support now totalling £54m. Tony McDonough reports

A further £1.9m has been secured to help businesses in Liverpool city region affected by the impact of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (CA) has already distributed more than £44m in emergency funding to more than 4,000 businesses in Liverpool, Wirral, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens and Halton during the pandemic.

Taken together with the £8.1m Trading On Scheme currently being distributed by the city region’s six local authorities to small and medium-sized businesses, this additional funding takes the total secured from the Government’s Additional Restrictions Grants to £54m.

This latest funding will be targeted at those businesses in the hospitality, leisure and accommodation sectors. Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, and the leaders of the six local authorities, issued a statement saying: “Throughout the past 18 months, we have worked together to project our region from the biggest challenge it has faced since the war. 

“That collaboration, creativity and hard work resulted in millions of pounds of support that helped sustain thousands of businesses in all parts of our region through the worst of the pandemic.

“This latest funding means we will have distributed around £54m was to more than 4,000 businesses, saving many more thousands of jobs and livelihoods in the process. We start our recovery from a much stronger position as a result.”

In addition to the national Omicron Leisure and Hospitality Grant, administered by local authorities for businesses in commercial premises, the city region has been awarded £1.87m from the Government’s additional £102m for local authorities in England.

This funding is intended to support small and micro businesses outside the business rates system, that have been seriously affected by Omicron, in particular those in the hospitality, leisure and accommodation sectors. Grants will be distributed on a “first come, first served” basis.

One-off grants of £1,000 are available for home-based businesses and £3,000 for businesses with commercial premises. For more information on the individual schemes, including eligibility and how to apply, businesses should visit their local council website. How the latest money will be allocated: