A letter that was sent to the First Minister expressing concerns at the lack of support for start-ups under current arrangements has received support from the main business organisations in Wales, Welsh entrepreneurs and the opposition parties in the Senedd.
Earlier this week and following representations from the business community, Professor Dylan Jones-Evans wrote to the Welsh Government to point out that whilst the general economic response from the UK and Welsh Governments has been rapid and timely, very little of what has been on offer in terms of their economic response to the Covid-19 crisis has been of any relevance to new businesses. Instead, he suggested:
- A Covid-19 Start-Up Support Grant scheme could be established which, as with the UK Government’s self-employed grant scheme, would enable all start-ups set up in 2019 and 2020 to get a taxable grant.
- That all qualifying start-ups could receive grants of £10,000 under the new Economic Resilience Fund.
- The creation of up a runway fund that could offer convertible loan notes to those tech start-ups that are beginning to have a real impact on the Welsh economy and need funding now to continue trading.
- A business rates holiday for those co-working spaces that have been vital in supporting the growth of a vibrant enterprise ecosystem in Wales
- Welsh Government should lobby the UK Government for specific measures to be introduced at a UK level such as enhanced support for investors under the SEIS/EIS schemes.
- Preparations for the post Covid 19 landscape should ensure that the current low interest loans offered by the Development Bank of Wales are continued beyond this year to give small firms the support they need to be competitive going forward.
Following his letter to Welsh Government, all of the major business organisations in Wales are now supporting his call to action namely:
- CBI Wales
- Federation of Small Businesses
- The Institute of Directors
- North Wales Tourism
- South Wales Chamber of Commerce
- Technology Connected
- Tech Taskforce for Wales
- West Cheshire and North Wales Chamber of Commerce
In addition, a number of prominent entrepreneurs have also come forward in the last 24 hours to urge the Welsh Government to support new businesses in any future interventions including:
- Chris Ganje, Amplyfi
- Roy Allkin, Boss Brewery and Wolfestone
- John Rawnsley, CP Hire
- Nick Evans, EvaBuild
- Harri Coleman, Fabric
- Lucy Cohen, Mazuma Money
- Vicky Beech and Dylan Griffith, Smorgsabord
- Kate Methuen-Ley, Tiger Cardiff
- Gareth Jones, Town Square Spaces
- Sean Taylor, ZipWire Ltd
Professor Jones-Evans said:
“The response to this letter from the business community has been incredibly supportive which is not surprising given they all understand the importance of startups to the Welsh economy. In addition, I have been contacted by the leaders of both the Welsh Conservatives and Plaid Cymru who will be making representations to the First Minister. I will also be raising this issue with the Secretary of State for Wales later today to ensure that the UK Government looks to supports new businesses not only here in Wales but across the rest of the UK. There is also the option of petitioning the Senedd which I am sure would gain considerable backing from businesses across Wales”.
“Since the letter, many start-ups have contacted me to say they remain worried that they will be excluded from receiving support via the new Economic Resilience Fund especially if only those firms that are VAT registered are considered for support as has been suggested. The vast majority of new firms will not be in that position as they have just started their business and to exclude them from any support whatsoever would leave them in a financially difficult position which could mean that despite having good businesses in 2019, they will not be around in 2021.”
“Given that start-ups create the majority of jobs in any economy and are exactly the sort of businesses that Wales cannot afford to lose when we come out of the current crisis, I would again urge the Welsh Government to ensure that they are not abandoned at this critical time for the Welsh economy”
