MS raises plight of B&B owners in Senedd

After making repeated calls in recent weeks for the Welsh Government to support small Bed and Breakfast businesses in North Wales during the Covid-19 crisis, North Wales Senedd Member Mark Isherwood has appealed to those in power to provide them with a message of hope.

Mr Isherwood has been fighting to get B&Bs the financial support he says they desperately need but so far without success.

Taking part in a virtual plenary meeting of the Welsh Parliament he raised their plight again and make fresh calls for Welsh Government support.  

He said:  “Although small Bed and Breakfasts are a mainstay of local tourism economies across North Wales they're ineligible for the Welsh Government's £10,000 Business Grant.

“When I raised this with the Economy Minister, he referred to the eligibility checker for the second phase of the Economic Resilience Fund. When it opened, they were ineligible.

“When I questioned him about this, he said he would have to understand why. I therefore wrote to him with their evidence.

“In his reply he said “the support package in Wales is the most comprehensive and generous in the UK”, yet grants are available to B&B operators in England and Scotland who do not qualify for other Covid-19 grant support, but operators in Wales have been denied equivalent grants.

“What, therefore, is your message for the genuine B&B business operators who have told me their finances have now run out and they can't go on any longer? I hope it's one of hope.”

In his response, the Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Dafydd Elis-Thomas, told Mr Isherwood that he would be “happy to review the situation” and would be very interested in seeing examples of the businesses that have approached him so that officials could talk to them about how their needs could be met more effectively.

Speaking after the meeting, Mr Isherwood said: “I will provide the Deputy Minister with examples, as I did with the Economy Minister, Ken Skates, but these businesses do not have time on their side. They need support quickly if they are to have any chance of surviving this pandemic."