Extend COVID-19 Business Hardship Grants to Liverpool
Petitioner:
Cr Nathan Hagarty
| Member:
Lynch, Paul
| No. of Signatories:
143
| Date closed:
06/08/2021
To the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly, residents and businesses in the Liverpool Local Government Area have identified a disparity in NSW Government support for businesses affected by COVID-19. Small businesses on the Northern Beaches that experienced hardship as a result of COVID-19 have access to $3000 and $5000 grants through a tailored funding program.
Meanwhile, this support has not been extended to businesses in Liverpool and other Western Sydney regions impacted by COVID-19, despite Liverpool being one of the worst hit areas early in the pandemic. An outbreak at the Crossroads Hotel caused businesses across the Liverpool LGA to experience huge income loss, largely due to media attention causing residents and visitors to avoid the area for many weeks. As evidence of the hardship suffered in Liverpool, the 2170 postcode claimed the third-highest number of JobKeeper payments in Australia (after the Sydney and Melbourne CBDs).
Throughout 2020, Liverpool Council implemented a Business Resilience Program to support businesses across Liverpool to navigate the unprecedented challenges bought about by the pandemic. However, we recognise more needs to be done to support business recovery in the post-COVID environment.
The undersigned petitioners therefore ask the NSW Government to extend the Northern Beaches funding program to businesses in the Liverpool Local Government Area which have suffered a decline in turnover of at least 30 per cent since March 2020. This will cover costs such as utilities, rent, financial or legal advice and other activities to support the operation of a business.
