To ask the Minister for the Economy whether she will reopen the Limited Company Directors Support Scheme with relaxed criteria in light of low take-up.

The Limited Company Directors Support Scheme (LCDSS) was agreed by the Executive on 8 January 2021 and opened to applications on 21 January 2021. The aim of the LCDSS is to provide financial support to company directors who have personally been adversely impacted by COVID-19. A taxable grant of £3,500 will be paid to the applicant, i.e. the director.

While there are approximately 14,500 sole limited company directors registered for PAYE (and a minimum of 20,000 directors of small limited companies in total) it was acknowledged from the outset, that it was impossible to estimate with any degree of certainty how many applicants would apply and/or qualify for support. A key reason that has come to light regarding a lower than expected number of applications is an apparent lack of awareness amongst some businesses and company directors of the scheme. As a direct result, both my Department and InvestNI Press Offices, have been making a concerted effort to raise awareness and further promote the scheme.

To facilitate this work and allow additional time for applicants to gather evidence and submit applications, I have extended the closing date for applications to 4 March 2021. Further details of the scheme, including eligibility criteria can be found on the NI Business Info website at www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk.

I would encourage any company director who has been personally impacted by Covid-19 and believes they meet the eligibility criteria to make an application as soon as possible.