Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled a £600m discretionary coronavirus fund following urgent lobbying by The Women’s Organisation and two Merseyside MPs. Tony McDonough reports

Liverpool City Council is inviting small and micro businesses who have been unable to access existing Government support schemes during the coronavirus crisis, to get in touch.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled a £600m discretionary fund following urgent lobbying by Liverpool social enterprise, The Women’s Organisation, with the support of Merseyside Labour MPs Kim Johnson and Mick Whitley.

In March, Mr Sunak unveiled a scheme whereby businesses with a rateable value of up to £51,000 could claim grants of either £10,000 or £25,000, as well as grants for the self-employed. However, a number of small businesses did not qualify for either and had slipped through net.

The city council is now inviting applications from businesses to apply to the fund, that are based within the city boundary. If you have ongoing fixed property related costs and can demonstrate that you have seen a significant drop of income due to the coronavirus restriction measures, you may be eligible to apply.

Allocation of funds will be based on local economic need. The council said: “We will shortly be accepting applications. If you believe you may be eligible and intend to apply for the discretionary grant, please register your interest and we will contact you when the formal application process is open.”

Click here to register your interest in the fund