£1 billion Business Support Fund opens

Grants to help businesses with COVID-19 impact

Businesses can now apply for grants to help them deal with the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

The one-off grants are designed to help protect jobs, prevent business closures and promote economic recovery, and more than 90,000 ratepayers across Scotland will be able to benefit.

The grant support is additional to separate tax relief measures and is part of a package of measures worth £2.2 billion.

Small businesses in receipt of the small business bonus scheme or rural relief, as well as hospitality, leisure and retail business can benefit.

Two types of grant are now available to ratepayers:

• a one-off £10,000 grant to ratepayers of small businesses

• a one-off grant of £25,000 available to retail, hospitality and leisure business ratepayers with a rateable value between £18,001 and £50,999

The list is not exhaustive and if businesses think they may be eligible for one of these grants, they should contact their local authority, which are administering the scheme on behalf of the Scottish Government.

Cabinet Secretary for Finance Kate Forbes said: “While our primary concern is for people’s health, it is clear that the Coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak will have severe economic consequences, and we are treating it as an economic emergency.

“We are determined to help keep companies in business and support them and their staff during this difficult time.

“Local authorities are the most efficient way to deliver this and we have worked closely with them to deliver these measures – and eligible businesses can apply now.

“Local authorities will aim to make payments within 10 working days, and I’d like to thank them for their help in ensuring this support is delivered as quickly as possible.

“The COVID-19 situation, however, is both severe and fast-moving and requires a coordinated UK response: I will continue to work closely with the UK Government and the other devolved administrations.”

More information on how to apply can be found at:
https://www.mygov.scot/non-domestic-rates-coronavirus/

Coronavirus: NHS Lothian launches new Community Hub

NHS Lothian has announced the launch of a new Community Hub to help reduce pressures on GP practices and hospitals amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

The Hub, which is part of a national approach, will be staffed by a mixture of nurses and doctors. The Hub will handle calls with members of the public, triaged initially through NHS 24’s 111 phone line, who may be experiencing symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) and who may need further assessment and advice.

As well as providing information and reassurance, The Hub service will facilitate face to face scheduled appointments for those individuals who may need further clinical assessment, but who do not need emergency care.

David Small, Director of Primary Care Transformation, NHS Lothian said: “For many weeks now, we have been working hard to increase capacity across our services.

“The launch of the new Community Hub will help ease some of the pressure that both GP practices and NHS24 have been experiencing as a result of coronavirus (COVID-19).

“At one Lothian GP practice alone, we experienced over 150 extra calls in a single day from patients worried about coronavirus (COVID-19). The Hub will help to better manage this demand, providing information, advice and clinical assessment, meaning that both GP and hospital resources can focus on managing patients with other conditions.

“In what is no doubt a challenging and unsettling time for many, I hope that by sharing these plans, it will offer some reassurance.”

The public should continue to use NHS Inform for information and advice, and to call NHS24 (111) if they have symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) which are not improving. Calls will be triaged to the Community Hub if they require more specialist advice.

To stay up to date with the latest coronavirus (COVID-19) advice, visit NHS Inform: https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/infections-and-poisoning/coronavirus-covid-19

A free helpline has been set up for those who do not have symptoms but are looking for general health advice. This can be accessed by calling 0800 028 2816. The helpline is open Monday to Friday, 8:00am – 10:00pm, Saturday and Sunday, 8:00am – 6:00pm.

Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre closed

Unfortunately the Neighbourhood Centre has closed its doors until further notice. We are expected to be closed for at least the next three weeks and will then be guided by Government directives.

Emails to the Neighbourhood Centre will be remotely monitored by Roy and Lynda as will our Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Emails to info@drylawnc.org.uk is the preferred method of contact.

We hope to see you all very soon and will let you know when we are open for business. Until then stay safe.

MSPs support UK Coronavirus Bill

The Scottish Parliament has backed measures contained in UK emergency legislation that will help strengthen Scotland’s response to coronavirus (COVID-19).

The UK Coronavirus Bill, which was introduced to the House of Commons on 19 March, includes new reserved and devolved laws that will help to slow the spread of the virus.

New measures include:

• bringing more health professionals and social workers into the workforce
• relaxing regulations to ease the burden on frontline staff
• enhanced public health measures designed to contain the virus or slow its spread
• collecting necessary information to enable monitoring of disruption to food supply chains

The bill includes new powers that will enable authorities to cancel events and close premises, and to allow the police to compel potentially infectious people to undergo COVID-19 screening and assessment.

These new emergency powers cover a two-year period that can be extended if necessary and will only be used if required.

The Scottish Government has confirmed that it will use powers within the Bill to ensure that action to implement social distancing and impose restrictions on gatherings, events and operation of business activity can be enforced.

Constitution Secretary Michael Russell said: “This new emergency legislation will help to save lives as we face this unprecedented crisis.

“It is only because of the extraordinary public health challenge confronting us, as a result of the global pandemic, that these measures have had to be considered.

“These are emergency powers that will be in force temporarily and only used if required.

“I am grateful that the Scottish Parliament supported the bill and we are committed to reporting on how and when the emergency powers included in the Bill have been used.”

In addition to the UK ‘four nations’ Bill, the Scottish Government will also bring forward emergency Coronavirus legislation to the Scottish Parliament soon.

The Coronavirus Bill can be viewed on the UK Parliament website.

Coronavirus: Tailored support for those at highest risk

New guidance and local support is being implemented to help shield around 200,000 of the most at-risk Scots from coronavirus (COVID-19).

The measures are tailored towards supporting people with the highest risk of severe illness from the virus, as identified by the UK’s Chief Medical Officers. Scotland’s CMO Dr Catherine Calderwood will also be writing to those identified as being at greatest risk in the coming days to provide further information and bespoke guidance on how to best protect themselves from infection.

The new support being offered will help people self-isolate – thereby making it less likely that they will contract the virus – and protect them from the detrimental effects of self-isolation, including disruption of crucial health and social care, and social isolation and loneliness.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney has ordered the establishment of Humanitarian Assistance Centres across the country as soon as possible.

Mr Swinney said: “Responding to the coronavirus pandemic is the biggest challenge of our lifetimes, and we must do all we can to slow it down and save lives.

“That’s why we are asking people at the highest clinical risk to self-isolate for a long period, and our local services must prioritise them. This will help protect them, minimise the loss of life from Covid-19, and reduce the burden on the NHS in responding to patients who are likely to become severely unwell.

“I have every confidence in the capability of Scotland’s resilience community to effectively lead what will be the biggest response effort ever undertaken in peacetime. We know that it won’t be easy, but by working together everyone can play their part in keeping people safe.”

The new support will be made available through GPs and local resilience partnerships, and will include help with medical conditions, access to medicine and services, and also access to food and supplies.

The Deputy First Minister has written to Local Resilience Partnerships around the country asking them to set up Humanitarian Assistance Centres (HAC) or an equivalent arrangement.

The Scottish Government is engaging with suppliers to put in place a national framework to ensure supplies can be secured at a local level.

The six categories of risk – as agreed by the UK’s Chief Medical Officers – are:

1. Solid organ transplant recipients

2. People with specific cancers:
a. People with cancer who are undergoing active chemotherapy or radical radiotherapy for lung cancer
b. People with cancers of the blood or bone marrow such as leukaemia, lymphoma or myeloma who are at any stage of treatment
c. People having immunotherapy or other continuing antibody treatments for cancer
d. People having other targeted cancer treatments which can affect the immune system, such as protein kinase inhibitors or PARP inhibitors
e. People who have had bone marrow or stem cell transplants in the last 6 months, or who are still taking immunosuppression drugs

3. People with severe respiratory conditions including all cystic fibrosis, severe asthma and severe COPD

4. People with rare diseases and inborn errors of metabolism that significantly increase the risk of infections (such as SCID, homozygous sickle cell)

5. People on immunosuppression therapies sufficient to significantly increase risk of infection

6. People who are pregnant with significant congenital heart disease

The first port of call for anyone looking for information is the NHS Inform website.

Council announces essential service changes

Changes to Council services and projects have been put into effect to help protect the public and workers during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Measures follow the new rules set by the UK Prime Minister and Scotland’s First Minister to limit the spread of the virus, advising that people should only leave home once a day for exercise, to shop for essential items or for medication and to travel to and from work if absolutely necessary.

Amongst preventative actions, the council is suspending charges for on-street parking bays to support key workers who are reliant on their private vehicles, closing play parks to discourage people from gathering and shutting down household waste and recycling centres. 

Council Leader Adam McVey said: “We’re making every effort to deliver the core services needed by residents in Edinburgh, but it’s crucial that we heed the new measures being implemented nationwide to ensure the health and safety of all those who live and work in the city.

“The message from Scotland’s First Minister and the UK Prime Minister is clear – people should stay in their homes unless it is absolutely necessary to go out for work, food or health reasons or to look after the vulnerable.

“We must encourage people to stay indoors to limit the spread of Coronavirus and by making changes like suspending parking pay and display charges we’re supporting key workers to continue delivering vital services to those that need it, while our decision to close recycling centres will reduce face-to-face contact between teams and members of the public across the city.

“It will also help us to redirect resources to support our wider waste collection service.

“This is, of course, an extraordinary situation and we are adapting to a constantly-changing landscape. There is no doubt that our services will face increasing pressure and I’d like to take this opportunity to call on the people of Edinburgh to help us to look after the city during these unprecedented times, by following our advice, taking responsibility for any litter if outside of the house and looking out for neighbours where possible.”

Depute Leader Cammy Day said: “It’s essential that we support the country’s efforts to reduce the impact of the Coronavirus by following national guidance, staying indoors where possible and practising social distancing, and we need to make these changes to help facilitate that.

“We also rely on the public to help us to comply with new rules, and to limit the impact of the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. I’d like to thank those who have taken such care to follow the guidance, as well as the many staff, partners and volunteers who have made sure vulnerable residents are safe – we will get through this together.”

SERVICE CHANGES

Parking charges

From today charges for all on-street pay and display parking bays will be suspended until further notice. Yellow lines, loading bays, disabled parking places and car club places will continue to be enforced.

Waste and cleansing

Waste collections will continue as usual, other than blue box glass recycling collections, which were suspended on Monday.

Residents are reminded to follow advice on the safe disposal of waste should they or someone living in their household have symptoms that may be caused by Coronavirus, and do not require hospital treatment though must remain at home until they are well.

Household Waste and Recycling Centres are closed until further notice. Special uplifts and bin deliveries have also stopped. Find out more about suspended services online.

Street cleansing and litter bin collections will continue, but with a limited service. For this reason, the public are urged to help keep streets clean by disposing of litter responsibly – taking it home if bins are full – and cleaning up after dogs.

Parks and greenspaces

All play parks, mixed use games area courts, outdoor exercise equipment, skateparks and car parks associated with parks will be closed. Allotments will remain open though users are subject to national rules advising one trip outside of the home a day and to maintain social distancing.

Registration services

Birth registrations have been postponed until normal service resumes. We are awaiting the implementation of a national process to send notification of all births that have occurred in our area to National Records Scotland, who will in turn pass this information to Social Security Scotland to allow Child Benefit claims to be made.

Marriage and civil partnership registrations have been cancelled or postponed.

Death registrations are currently postponed and will move to a system of remote registration once introduced nationally. Until this process has been fully initiated we are gathering the information from families for input into the system. Full details are available online.

Funerals

Taking account of industry and Government guidance, it is intended that numbers attending a funeral facilitated by the Council are 15 or less, limited to close family. Funeral directors working with families may identify other relations using their discretion. Full details are available online.

Key worker childcare arrangements

There will be 23 school buildings open and operating from tomorrow thanks to more than 1000 staff who are coming into work. From Friday, Queensferry Primary School will also open to provide support for families where both parents and carers fall within the key worker category and have no other possible childcare arrangements. Parents and carers will be contacted directly regarding the school their child should come along to. More details are available online.

Local Critical Resilience Centres

Local Critical Resilience Centres based in Wester Hailes, Pilton Gardens, Captain’s Road, Leith and Craigmillar provide a base for staff to provide welfare, housing and household support by phone and email. Customers are asked to attend in-person only if it is critical, for example if they are experiencing homelessness, threats to their wellbeing or require urgent cash payments. This will prioritise support for residents who face financial hardship. They will operate 10am – 4pm.

Public transport

Edinburgh Trams and Lothian Buses are keeping their customers up to date with information and service changes online and via their social media channels. Both companies are operating reduced services.

You can access a wide range of Council services at www.edinburgh.gov.uk and report many concerns through the website. If you are experiencing an emergency or critical situation please call 0131 200 2000.

HOSPITAL VISITING SUSPENDED

NHS Lothian has announced that visiting will be suspended to limit the spread of coronavirus and to protect vulnerable patients, as well as staff. This move will come into effect from today.

Visiting will continue in specific circumstances; for example patients receiving end-of-life care, for inpatients in our children’s services and those accompanying partners during childbirth. Visiting arrangements for these groups should only take place following discussions with senior charge nurses or midwives.

Professor Alex McMahon, Director of Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Healthcare Professionals, NHS Lothian said: “Across NHS Lothian, Scotland and the UK, we are experiencing profound changes in our daily lives as a result of coronavirus (COVID-19).

“Now, more than ever, we need to work together. To our patients and their families, I would urge you to help us by respecting this difficult decision.”

Professor McMahon added: “I understand that not being able to visit family members while they are in hospital may be upsetting and I would like to assure the public that this decision has not been taken lightly.

“All across the UK, people are being urged to stay at home where they can and to limit social interactions, instead using phone and video calls to stay in touch with family and friends.

“The decision to suspend visiting may be unpopular with some patients and their families, but it has been made to help protect the safety of your loved ones and our staff.”

To stay up to date with the latest coronavirus (COVID-19) advice, visit NHS Inform: https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/infections-and-poisoning/coronavirus-covid-19

A free helpline has been set up for those who do not have symptoms but are looking for general health advice.

This can be accessed by calling 0800 028 2816. The helpline is open Monday to Friday, 8:00am – 10:00pm, Saturday and Sunday, 8:00am – 6:00pm.

Foreign Secretary: Come Home NOW

The Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) has advised all British travellers to return to the UK NOW.

Read our latest coronavirus travel advice.

  • all British travellers abroad who are usually based in the UK advised to return now
  • international travel is becoming highly limited with the further closure of air routes, land borders and domestic restrictions introduced daily
  • British travellers should contact their tour operator or airline now. Commercial flight options are still available at present.

All British tourists and short-stay travellers currently abroad should return to the UK where and while commercial flight options are still available, the Foreign Secretary announced yesterday.

Last week, the FCO announced an unprecedented change in travel advice to advise against all but essential international travel, initially for a period of 30 days.

Monday’s update reflects the pace at which international travel is becoming more difficult with the closure of borders, airlines suspending flights, airports closing, exit bans and further restrictions being introduced daily. Further closures to air routes may come in the next 48 hours, possibly without notice.

Some British tourists abroad are already finding difficulties returning to the UK because of international travel restrictions and domestic policies around the world. The FCO is working around the clock to support all British travelers in this situation come back to the UK.

The UK government is working with airlines to keep routes open and is calling for international action to keep air routes open for a sufficient period of time to enable international travellers to return on commercial flights.

Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, said: “We are strongly urging UK travellers overseas to return home now where and while there are still commercial routes to do so. Around the world, more airlines are suspending flights and more airports are closing, some without any notice.

“Where commercial routes don’t exist, our staff are working round the clock to give advice and support to UK nationals. If you are on holiday abroad the time to come home is now while you still can.”

Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, said: “This is a very difficult time for British citizens travelling overseas, or those with families and loved ones abroad.

“We’re in close contact with airlines, who are working tirelessly to ensure British citizens travelling overseas can safely return to the UK. We are also working closely with other government departments, including the FCO to ensure airlines are able to operate to bring people back home.”

British travellers should contact their tour operator or airline now to arrange a commercial flight if they want to leave. There is an unprecedented demand on the FCO’s consular services so all British tourists abroad should go online for the latest in-country advice.

This advice is aimed at British people travelling abroad, rather than those who are permanent resident overseas who are urged to follow the advice of the local authorities in their host country.

Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: “While it’s right British travellers are being urged to return to the UK, the reality is that there are now thousands of UK residents stranded in dozens of different destinations with no means to get back.

“The government must improve its communication and provide British citizens fearful of being stranded abroad with useful advice. Where scheduled services have been withdrawn, it should leave no stone unturned to get these people on flights home.”

Berry growers launch recruitment drive

Scottish berry growers launch recruitment drive for temporary workers affected by coronavirus-related redundancies

  • Angus Growers farms in Scotland need over 3,000 workers to pick fresh berries this season
  • Soft Fruit supplier calls on public to unite in new Feed Our Nation campaign

A group of Scottish berry growers have launched a large-scale recruitment drive to encourage people in Scotland who have been affected by recent coronavirus-related redundancies to come and work on their farms.

Angus Growers is a group of 19 Scottish farmers who last year produced over 12,400 tonnes of fresh berries for consumers across the UK. However, this year they are anticipating a shortfall of 3,200 workers, almost 80% of their workforce, as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and its impact on workers coming into the UK from mainland Europe.

On Friday, the UK Government announced workers involved in the production, processing, distribution, sale and delivery of food would be classed as critical workers and that their children would be prioritised by education providers.

James Porter, soft fruit grower for Angus Growers, who is also NFU Scotland’s horticulture chair, explains: “We are entering an unprecedented time. As restrictions on our day-to-day lives increase and challenges build, the Scottish horticultural industry has a critical role to play in helping us maintain our health and nutritional wellbeing.

“For many years the Scottish berry industry has relied on recruiting workers from mainland Europe to provide seasonal labour to pick our crops due to a severe lack of availability of local workers.

“Due to ever growing travel restrictions aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus, we are now facing a shortfall of almost 80% of the workers required in Scotland to pick our crops this season.

“I know that many people are facing redundancy across the travel and hospitality industries and I would encourage anyone who is looking for work to visit our new dedicated recruitment site and apply. People might have a misconception that picking fruit doesn’t pay that well, however all our growers pay in accordance with the Scottish Agriculture Wages Order, which is based on the national living wage.

“Accommodation is available on site for anyone who doesn’t live in close proximity to one of our farms, and full support and training will be provided.”

Angus Growers need to recruit over 3,000 people to pick strawberries, raspberries and blue berries and blackberries this season.

If you have recently been made redundant and are looking for work, please visit jobs.angusgrowers.co.uk

James continued: “The health and wellbeing of our staff is of paramount importance, and we are following the latest UK and Scottish Government advice and guidelines relating to Covid-19.

“This includes restricting access to sites to essential visitors only, controlling who comes in and out, splitting a farm’s workforce into teams and keeping these teams isolated from one another, social distancing, site lock down measures and disinfecting procedures.

“Thankfully, the risk of spread among farm workers is relatively low due to the open-air nature of harvesting activity; farms unlike offices, are large places where people can spread out.

“We want to reassure the public that if any workers do develop symptoms and need to self-isolate, farm accommodation is in “caravan park” style permanent units sleeping three or four persons, which means anyone suffering symptoms can isolate easily in a dedicated unit and have food brought to them for the period of time needed.

“There is an opportunity here for us all to work together to feed our nation. We desperately need workers to help us harvest our berries and ensure the UK public can enjoy healthy, nutritious food during this period of uncertainty.”

Angus Growers is also working closely with the National Farmers Union Scotland to ensure agricultural and farming businesses across Scotland can continue to produce high quality food throughout the outbreak.

James concluded: “Today we’ve launched a recruitment drive for our berry growers, however we’re also looking at how the wider food supply industry can work together to ensure the continued supply of high-quality food.

“I would encourage anyone working in the food supply industry to please reach out to me to ensure we all work together for the good of the nation.”