AQW 26328/22-27

Mr Andrew McMurray
Alliance Party
South Down

Tabled Date: 29/04/2025
Answered On Date: 08/05/2025
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for the Economy whether she will consider introducing a new funding scheme with a higher cap to facilitate significant repairs that could not be facilitated through funding under the Enhanced Flood Support Scheme.

Answer:

When it became clear that the Enhanced Flood Support Scheme would cost less than anticipated, the option to increase the £100k cap was considered. However, advice from officials was that this would be difficult to justify on Value-for-Money grounds as the majority of impacted businesses had re-opened. The majority of businesses receiving the enhanced grant also received the £7,500 provided under the Flood Damage Business Grant Scheme as well as rate relief. This level of support was significantly more generous than the flood support offered in Britain. The maximum grant provided via the EFSS also exceeded the €100,000 offered by the South in its Enhanced Emergency Business Flood Relief Scheme - that scheme was also more restrictive in comparison to the EFSS in that it was only available to businesses with up to 20 employees whereas the EFSS was open to businesses with up to 250 employees.