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LAST UPDATE | 9 Dec 2021
THE GOVERNMENT HAS said that it would be “too complicated” to introduce targeted supports for the hospitality industry before Christmas and has instead decided to extend wider business supports.
Speaking in the Dáil last week, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said that most companies in receipt of the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) were not in the hospitality sector and the government was looking at more targeted supports.
The context of his comments were fresh Covid-19 restrictions introduced last week that closed nightclubs, placed limits on people per table in bars and restaurants and reinforced social distancing requirements.
The restrictions coincided with a cut to the EWSS on 1 December but Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe confirmed today that this cut has now been reversed and the higher rate would continue until the end of January.
Planned reductions building up to the end of the scheme on 30 April will continue, however.
Separately, the Covid Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS) is also to be extended from the end of December to 31 January 2022. A further amendment to the Finance Bill 2021 will allow CRSS to be further extended by the minister if required.
Speaking this morning, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said: “it was intended to develop further targeted support for those sectors that are most affected by these restrictions and to have this support in place quickly.
Upon further analysis of the proposal by my Department and the Revenue Commissioners, it became clear that it would be complex to develop an appropriate and effective scheme in the immediate term.
“Instead, I have decided to extend the enhanced rates of EWSS for the months of December and January to give certainty to businesses when they need it most,” he said.
Asked about the lack of targeted measures, Donohoe said that “while sectoral plans may indeed be possible, they’re not possible as quickly as we would want”.
He added: “Throughout this public health crisis, speed has to trump perfection of design.”
In the Dáil this morning following Donohoe’s announcement, Varadkar also noted that the government “hoped to do something more targeted”.
When we tried to do it it turned out to be too complicated. Restoration (of the full EWS rate) will be for all companies, but only for companies that can show 30% reduction in turnover, and that will include the hospitality sector and the arts, to help get them through this difficult period, at least until the end of January. There will be some companies that won’t need it as much but it will mean additional money in the economy and will lift all boats.
The Restaurants Association of Ireland this morning welcomed the continuation of the EWSS for another two months and said it was “the correct decision due to severe loss in business due to public health advice”.
RAI CEO Adrian Cummins has however called for “a medium to long-term plan for recovery and viability of hospitality due to Covid”.
Cannot continue
Both Donohoe and Minister for Public Expenditure Michael McGrath described the EWSS as “costly” and reiterated that it “cannot continue indefinitely”.
McGrath said that over €9 billion has been paid out in wage supports during the pandemic, supporting 700,000 workers.
“The government has been clear that there will be no cliff edge to supports for employers”, Donohoe said.
But we have also been clear that the EWSS cannot run indefinitely, nor is it sustainable to continue with the enhanced rates for a prolonged period of time given the very substantial costs to the Exchequer.
Asked how many firms are estimated to close when supports are removed, Donohoe said that this was difficult to calculate but acknowledged that it was a “moment of risk”.
“It is very difficult to be able to model what will be the impact of the withdrawal of these supports when we get into 2022 and the health and viability of employers because there are currently so many employers on the scheme and their business and economic circumstances are all very, very different. It will be a moment of risk when we begin to reduce and ultimately exit from the supports. But we have to do without the right time,” he said.
The Pandemic Unemployment Payment reopened on Tuesday for people who have been laid off as a result of the latest restrictions. However, further supports for businesses had not been announced until this morning.
- With reporting by Hayley Halpin
I’d be more concerned about Leo stating his continued support for Dara Murphy who “is doing as great job” yet he spent 24 days in the Dail in one year and still gets full pay with 4300 euro monthly allowances..The scale of this arrogance in full view of the country is frightening.
It seems we must all accept when electing those to run the country we have a lot of shortcomings. It seems we are clueless. Electing these type of candidates may well seem great for our local area but it’s purely disastrous on a national level.
@Mjhint: clueless is quite kind . How FG even drums up support given the current situation with the country and the corruption amongst themselves leaves me completely perplexed . No lessons learned and you get the same same old .
Verona Murphy as far as I know was never involved in politics or community groups. I am always sceptical of people who are just handpicked by the Party because they have a high profile in another area which is Haulage in her case. My opinion is that she is only learning and would have been better starting at County Council level . Her inexperience is obvious as she keeps putting her foot in it and blaming everyone else. In other words she lost the run of herself by all the attention she received.
@Aine O Connor:
Standard practice really Aine if you ask me. Most of the moon pigs in FG have feck all experience as politicians either. It’s inheritance politics in Ireland. Enda Kenny was a school teacher ffs. Law makers, Health care professionals and Business savvy people with integrity and the people’s interest is what’s needed for a decent government. Ireland is light years from that unfortunately.
@Nollaig Elliot: WOW. The kids in that school. were very lucky that Kenny got elected.They must be blessing themselves every day.
@Nollaig Elliot: Varadkar is a health care professional. As was the minister for health before him. Both did/are doing a god awful job. Qualifications are a small part of the requirements needed to do the job of a politician. Actually caring about people and the country is the most important attribute. That is not Learned!
@Aine O Connor: Yes, vester interests. The haulage sector just want someone on the inside to push their agenda.
@Fr. Fintan Stack: vested
@Fred Coloe: ye you can have all the qualifications in the world but if you are a sociopathic money hungry hand puppet it’s not much use to us.
@Fred Coloe: qualifications are very important – however they are sod all use if you have no interest in doing the job in the first place.
@Fr. Fintan Stack: “INVESTED”
@James Keogh: or even INFESTED
@Nollaig Elliot: why the ffs? Just cos he qualified as a teacher doesn’t mean he has to spend the rest of his life as one. He was a life time in politics
FFG are a total joke ….
@Willy Mc Bride: I hope she wins the seat just to pi$$ you off.
@Chin Feeyin: No wonder the country is a complete and utter mess with an attitude like that.
@Chin Feeyin: True Blue …..
@Willy Mc Bride: of course, everyone who disagrees has to be True Blur. Of course.
@Willy Mc Bride: looks like the Shinner is doing well in Dublin Mid-West.
God help us all.
@Chin Feeyin: where’s your pon pons today chin
@David Corrigan: you seeem to have amnesia, who got us into trouble in 2008 FFand Greens, whoI got us out of trouble E Kenny & co you have a short memory , selective too
She really is channeling her inner Trump. Racist comments, a history of allegations of bullying, representative of a gas-guzzling industry. Now the Rocky comparisons
@Anne Marie Devlin: as we speak, dozens of graphic designers have just had a crack at photoshopping her head onto Rocky’s body, and simultaneously lost their breakfasts…
@Anne Marie Devlin: yes and what makes it even more galling is that people like her, Trump and Farage paint themselves as if they are somehow the victim and antiestablishment when they couldn’t be more establishment .
@Anne Marie Devlin: How could anyone with any kind of backbone allow such a weak minded mess of a person bully them is beyond me.
@jamesdecay:
No.
That was the Rocky head on her body!
@Michael Kavanagh: ha ha splendid!
@Anne Marie Devlin: Without the “gas guzzlers” you and the rest of us would starve to death. Food and everything else that humans need/want has to be delivered to shops etc. !!
A distinct smell of desperation around fg these days
Embarrassed for the video production team and all the Blueshirts patsies involved.
@The Irish Bull: you spelled pasties wrong.
Video looks like it was.put together by a 12 year old. Actually, scrap that, it was put together by a 53 year old with their first video editor!
Video unavailable
Wonder did they/she have permission to use the song?
Is she the best Wexford has to offer ??
@Declan O Toole: Mick Wallace, living in the love of the common people?
I must visit Wexford – curiosity is getting the better of me.
@Etherman: Ya it really sounds like a place worth visiting, for the politicians alone.
@Declan O Toole:
Wexford is known as the Model County because of its rich farming land, bounded on one side by the Blackstairs Mountains and on the other side by the Irish Sea with numerous sandy beaches. It is sixty miles long . Rich in Heritage , invaded by the Vikings and the Normans in the past the landscape boasts many magnificent Castles like Johnstown Castle , Abbeys like Tintern Abbey with adjacent Colclough Walled Gardens , the Hook Lighthouse, The Haunted Loftus Hall , Dunbrody Famine Ship and JF Kennedy Memorial Park. Also Vinegar Hill in Enniscorthy where the Battle of 1798 was fought to mention just a few . The County has always been a very popular holiday destination for Dublin people in particular.
@Aine O Connor: Ah yeah, but it’s no Bally b by the sea.
@Aine O Connor: Thanks Aine.
@Aine O Connor: Thanks Aine, ya the beaches like Curracloe very nice indeed.
“character assassination” kinda sounds a lot like “fake news” uttered another right wing racist bigot we all know. It’s as simple as this, you like with dogs, you get get fleas. She repeatedly made vile discussing comments based on fear mongering and propaganda from the far right, she deserved everything she got.
@Yermas House: sorry, that should have been “lie down with dogs”. Bloody autocorrect!
@Yermas House: my 2 dogs don’t have fleas! In 10 years only had one tick , it’s how you care for them, meanwhile back to Irish politics….bit like Monty Python and Fr.Ted of a mixture usually….
@Yermas House: What’s wrong with liking dogs…?
@Gus Sheridan: I would just like to apologise for my earlier comments regarding dogs. I never in anyway meant to offend, or hurt any dog lovers out there, in fact I even know and am good friends with one of them.
I also do party agree with you or our Irish politics, except rather than a mixed breed of Monty Python and Fr.Ted, I reckon they’re more of a inbred self serving lot myself.
Are we racist yet Ted?
Favourite to get in. Seems the people like the truth instead of faux outrage. The video wouldn’t have helped her though. It’s the kind of quality you’d get from an RTÉ video editor.
The thing I don’t get is what does Leo think when he goes home at night. He’s a doctor so he must be clever. Surely he must know how terrible a job him and his gimps are doing. The man living on Jupiter knows, anyone with half a brain would not believe his government is doing good. If I was making a balls of my work that badly, I wouldn’t wait for the tap, I’d just walk myself. I’d be mortified to hang around if I was that shit at work. I wonder does he ever feel like just walking?
@Nollaig Elliot: HE will never walk. To be like his kind you need to have no morals or integrity. The Irish political system attracts the worst kind of people from our society. There is no place in that system for honest hardworking people. It is as simple and as black and white as that Nollaig.
@David Corrigan: so A) are you saying there’s no honest or hardworking politicians in Ireland? and B) only in Ireland is this the case?
The journal really need to pull their comments section if this is the standard
Massive copyright infringement right there. $$$$$
Surprise, Surprise, Video not available. Solo runs only annoy people and make a nonsense of Party cohesion. Hope the his Tiger loses her stripes and her Parachute. Hope YATES backed her,
and lost all his Shirts
What’s the lorry aul one on about now?
Go on Pip Breen
Surprise, Surprise, Video not available. Solo runs only annoy people and make a nonsense of Party cohesion. Hope the Tiger loses her stripes and her Parachute. Hope YATES backed her,
and lost all his Shirts
Dope !!
Da Meeja certainly didn’t spare her or wanted to see another point of view.
Da Meeks certainly didn’t spare her or wanted to see another point of view.
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