Major Jersey retailer: 'Our losses are eye-watering'
Business owners in Jersey have been outlining the scale of the financial hit they have faced during the coronavirus lockdown, as the government warns they will have to step up to refill the ‘rainy day fund’ when the crisis is over.
Gerald Voisin, who owns one of the island’s largest retailers – department store Voisin’s – is urging the government to take a more optimistic tone to encourage people back to the high street when lockdown eases or ends.
It comes on the day the government releases more details of how to apply for its wage co-funding scheme, part of a package of measures to save jobs and businesses that will cost in excess of £300 million.
The Assistant Treasury Minister, Senator Ian Gorst, has warned that emergency spending will need paying back.
Lisa Springate from the Institute of Directors in Jersey is hoping the government will work closely with businesses to come up with a recovery plan.
And Gerald Voisin hopes the recovery phase will spark some fresh thinking in government.
The “phase two” wage co-funding scheme will subsidise 80% of wages up to a maximum of £1,600 per month per employee, for April, May and June. It may also be extended to July and August if the crisis continues. Not all business sectors are eligible to apply, but the government revised its list last week following growing calls from excluded sectors.
Gary Burgess has more...