Guernsey's government pays out over £800,000 in benefits

Channel
Guernsey
Money
Monday 13 April 2020 at 10:56am

More than £800,000 has been paid out in government support to help people in Guernsey through the coronavirus pandemic.

Over 1,000 people have received money from claims for unemployment or sickness benefit, income support and the island's new hardship fund.

£468,000 has been paid in grants to 156 small businesses and 24 applications for the payroll co-funding scheme have been approved, totalling around £100,000.

877 successful claims have also been made to the island's revenue service from businesses to defer certain taxes and costs such as social security contributions. The total value of these deferrals is £3.4 million.

Deputy Lyndon Trott, Vice-President of Guernsey's Policy & Resources Committee, says that while the government is providing support, not all businesses will be able to survive the crisis. He warns that the government must now reconsider its budget for the rest of the year.

Throughout this crisis and beyond, we must be conscious that the funds used to support those facing financial difficulties, because of the coronavirus, are public funds. As a consequence of the circumstances we are also seeing far less in terms of public revenues. It is not only businesses and individuals that have seen their income cut. Clearly this expenditure was not envisaged when we planned the Budget for 2020. All of those plans now need careful reconsideration if we are to manage public finances successfully through this crisis. We are beginning to look at what we’ll need to do to help the economy recover, but we are acutely aware that we still don’t know how long restrictions on business will need to be in place and how severe the impact will ultimately be. This crisis has thrown up new challenges on a daily basis. It will be difficult on all of us for some time, but we will come out the other side, by supporting each other and working together.

[Coronavirus: All the information and advice for the Channel Islands in one place](http://Coronavirus: All the information and advice for the Channel Islands in one place)