Question reference: S6W-05880
- Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 25 January 2022
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Current status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 8 February 2022
Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it will confirm and publish on its website the (a) application process and (b) eligibility criteria for support for close contact service businesses, including hairdressers and beauticians, that have been impacted by the restrictions put in place in response to the Omicron variant of COVID-19, and how much support will be available per business.
Answer
We have published guidance which includes eligibility criteria for the Close Contact Fund and this information is now available on the Scottish Government website: Coronavirus (COVID-19): funding for businesses affected by Omicron control measures - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) and the Find Business Support website:
Close Contact Services Fund (findbusinesssupport.gov.scot) . Businesses will be able to apply for the close contact fund from Monday 14 th February. We have been working with relevant industry representatives to understand how best to target this funding as the sector includes a large number of businesses who do not have premise so cannot use non-domestic rates as a way of validating business details .
Eligible Businesses must be registered as a beauty service, hairdressing and hair removal service or a spa and wellness service and provide services listed in the guidance such as, hair trimming and cutting, laser hair removal, nail treatments etc.
The Close Contact grant is a one-off payment at the rate of £1,000 for self-employed businesses and £1,500 for NDR registered premise based business owners.