Glasgow City Council has been the slowest in the country at handing out the Government funded Coronavirus Business Support grants, according to new research by the Scottish Beer & Pub Association (SBPA). Only 96 Glasgow pubs, out of 384 who applied for support grants, have received them. This equates to 25% which makes Glasgow Council the worst Council in Scotland at administering the Coronavirus support fund with the Scottish Borders Council being the best giving out 95.86% of its grants to pubs already.
The SBPA research revealed that an estimated 1500 Scottish pubs eligible for vital grants, still haven’t received the funds from Local Authorities .
Across the whole of Scotland, 3,929 pubs are estimated to be eligible for a grant, with 61% (2,403) receiving the funds. This leaves an estimated 1526 pubs without this much needed cashflow at the end of the month, when bills and payments are due.
The Local Authorities with the lowest percentage of approved applications for grant support are:
- Glasgow; 25.05% approved grants and 288 Pubs without funds.
- South Lanarkshire; 48.95% approved grants with 80 Pubs without funds.
- Fife; 51.71% approved grants and 143 Pubs without funds.
However Council’s which deserve a pat on the back for supporting pubs with the highest number of approved applications for grants are:
- Scottish Borders; 95.86% of grants approved; only five Pubs without funds.
- Aberdeenshire; 83.84% grants approved with 31 Pubs without funds.
- Clackmannanshire; 81.45% grants approved and 7 Pubs without funds.
The support package was announced by the Finance Secretary Kate Forbes in March, with Local Authorities expected to receive funds within 10 days. Over one month later, many businesses have still seen no sign of the cash which is being distributed in £10K and £25K packages.
Commenting on the research, Emma McClarkin CEO of the Scottish Beer & Pub Association said, “Our research shows that too many Local Authorities are not paying grants to pubs and other hospitality businesses anywhere near quickly enough, with over 1500 pubs across Scotland estimated to still be waiting. For smaller pub businesses in particular this grant funding is urgently needed.
“This needs to be rectified immediately. Otherwise, pubs will close for good and the thousands of people they employ will lose jobs.
“Credit must go to those Local Authorities who are doing the right thing and getting their grants to pubs and other businesses quickly. We need the Local Authorities to learn from best practice and get the urgently needed support to pub businesses as a matter of urgency.”
The full table is available here.
| Rank worst to best | Local Authority | Percentage of applications awarded | Percentage of applications not awarded | Estimated pubs eligible for grant | Estimated pubs which have received a grant | Estimated pubs which haven’t received a grant | |
| 1 | Glasgow City | 25.05% | 74.95% | 384 | 96 | 288 | |
| 2 | South Lanarkshire | 48.95% | 51.05% | 156 | 76 | 80 | |
| 3 | Fife | 51.71% | 48.29% | 297 | 154 | 143 | |
| 4 | Aberdeen City | 52.16% | 47.84% | 109 | 57 | 52 | |
| 5 | Midlothian | 53.92% | 46.08% | 38 | 20 | 18 | |
| 6 | Inverclyde | 57.63% | 42.37% | 44 | 25 | 19 | |
| 7 | Falkirk | 62.85% | 37.15% | 83 | 52 | 31 | |
| 8 | Highland | 64.10% | 35.90% | 199 | 128 | 71 | |
| 9 | Na h-Eileanan Siar | 66.20% | 33.80% | 22 | 15 | 7 | |
| 10 | East Dunbartonshire | 66.81% | 33.19% | 24 | 16 | 8 | |
| 11 | Edinburgh City | 68.74% | 31.26% | 338 | 232 | 106 | |
| 12 | East Renfrewshire | 68.84% | 31.16% | 16 | 11 | 5 | |
| 13 | Renfrewshire | 70.26% | 29.74% | 103 | 72 | 31 | |
| 14 | North Lanarkshire | 70.36% | 29.64% | 154 | 108 | 46 | |
| 15 | Angus | 71.89% | 28.11% | 116 | 83 | 33 | |
| 16 | South Ayrshire | 72.26% | 27.74% | 122 | 88 | 34 | |
| 17 | West Lothian | 72.28% | 27.72% | 71 | 51 | 20 | |
| 18 | Orkney Islands | 72.92% | 27.08% | 39 | 28 | 11 | |
| 19 | West Dunbartonshire | 73.14% | 26.86% | 54 | 39 | 15 | |
| 20 | North Ayrshire | 73.21% | 26.79% | 114 | 83 | 31 | |
| 21 | Dundee City | 73.81% | 26.19% | 128 | 94 | 34 | |
| 22 | Perth & Kinross | 73.90% | 26.10% | 157 | 116 | 41 | |
| 23 | East Ayrshire | 75.36% | 24.64% | 104 | 78 | 26 | |
| 24 | Argyll and Bute | 75.74% | 24.26% | 202 | 153 | 49 | |
| 25 | East Lothian | 76.00% | 24.00% | 61 | 46 | 15 | |
| 26 | Stirling | 76.04% | 23.96% | 83 | 63 | 20 | |
| 27 | Dumfries and Galloway | 77.43% | 22.57% | 254 | 197 | 57 | |
| 28 | Moray | 79.04% | 20.96% | 99 | 78 | 21 | |
| 29 | Shetland Islands | 80.53% | 19.47% | 18 | 14 | 4 | |
| 30 | Clackmannanshire | 81.45% | 18.55% | 36 | 29 | 7 | |
| 31 | Aberdeenshire | 83.84% | 16.16% | 189 | 158 | 31 | |
| 32 | Scottish Borders | 95.86% | 4.14% | 115 | 110 | 5 | |
| Total | 61.16% | 38.84% | 3,929 | 2403 | 1526 | ||
This table uses data from the SBPA http://www.beerandpub.comand that published by the Scottish Government here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-business-support-fund-grant-statistics/
Information on the Coronavirus Business Support grants (via local authorities is available here:https://findbusinesssupport.gov.scot/coronavirus-advice/sources-of-funding