Small Business Survival Fund: $43.4m of $50m scheme released to nearly 1300 NT businesses

MORE than 1000 struggling Territory businesses have tapped into the NT government’s $50 million survival fund, with nearly all of the cash already out the door

MORE than 1000 struggling Territory businesses have tapped into the NT government’s $50 million survival fund, with nearly all of the cash already out the door.

The figures were revealed at the Territory’s final Public Accounts Committee (PAC) hearing into the government’s coronavirus response.

In response to a question from Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro, Department of Business, Innovation and Technology chief executive Shaun Drabsch said nearly 1300 business had qualified for help out of the government’s Small Business Survival Fund.

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He said $43.4 million had been handed out, with payments processed within 24 hours of applications being approved.

Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro. Picture: Che Chorley

The Small Business Survival Fund has been split into three parts; an initial $20 million slice to fund “immediate survival” or “rapid adaptation grants’’, followed by a second $20 million slice that was designed to “plug gaps” in the federal government’s JobKeeper package.

The final $10 million was put into Rebound Support Grants to help businesses “transition to the new normal”.

Ms Finocchiaro also questioned why the Department of Business, Innovation and Technology had not put up its regular economic snapshots since May.

Chief Minister Michael Gunner said this was because staff had been redirected to the grants team to help deal with processing thousands of Home Improvement Scheme applications, although there was “no reason for that not to have gone up”. The economic snapshots for June and July were on the department’s website by the time the committee wrapped up at 4pm.

“The fact the missing monthly economic snapshots were up online within minutes of my questioning their absence in PAC, shows how ridiculous the Gunner govern-ment operates,” Ms Finoc-chiaro said.

“So much for the Chief Minister’s excuse that staff hadn’t had time to complete them.”

Mr Drabsch also confirmed nearly half of all Home Improvement Scheme applications had been assessed.

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A total of 8000 had been approved and 8800 vouchers worth $44 million had been issued. Nearly 900 Business Improvement Grants, out of 1400 total applications, had been assessed and 343 had been approved. The vouchers sent out so far total $4.6 million.