State Labor Government leaves sole traders out of COVID-19 assistance program
Member for Herbert Phillip Thompson is calling on the State Labor Government to support a crucial sector of the business community left out of its Small Business COVID-19 Adaption Grant Program.
To be eligible for the $2,000-$10,000 grant, which can be put towards a range of uses, business owners must employ staff – leaving sole traders and self-employed people locked out of the program.
Mr Thompson said it was very disappointing that sole traders weren’t being looked after by the State Labor Government.
“This grants program has been plagued with issues from the very beginning, running out of money within days during the first round, and then the website failing as people applied for the second round,” Mr Thompson said.
“To add insult to injury, sole traders and self-employed people who have been just as hard-hit by COVID-19 can’t access these much-needed funds.
“At the Federal level we understood the importance of sole traders with eligibility for our JobKeeper program broad enough to include these small business operators.
“I’m calling on the State Labor Government to do the same and expand the eligibility criteria for the Adaption Grants to give these deserving small business owners the help they so desperately need.”
The Federal Government has been supporting small businesses with a suite of measures including the extension of the instant asset-write off, the JobKeeper wage subsidy and cash flow support payments for eligible businesses. More information can be found at treasury.gov.au/coronavirus.
ENDS