ScotRail and the support during the pandemic: FOI release

Information requested

You asked for the following information:-

1. The full amount from when the government started paying Scotrail wages to the present day.

2. How much revenue has Scotrail lost since the pandemic started in March to the present day?

3. What other public service has had extra money put into it since the start of the pandemic in March to the present day and how much public money have they had to put in to each public service?

4. Has the Scottish Government had to put in any additional public money to private companies and, if so, which ones and how much public money went into each one since the start of the pandemic in March to the present day?

Response

1. The full amount from when the government started paying ScotRail wages to the present day.

ScotRail wages and other costs are not wholly funded by the Scottish Government. These costs continue to be funded by the mix of revenue from passengers and government payment to cover the difference between revenue and all costs.

The figure for Staff Costs reported by ScotRail from 1 March 2020 to 20 September 2020* is £138,085,428.

* - 20 September 2020 is the most recently available actual information Transport Scotland has been provided by ScotRail.

2. How much revenue has ScotRail lost since the pandemic started in March to the present day?

An exemption under section 27(1) of FOISA applies to all of the information you have requested. This is because the information you have requested will be published on Transport Scotland's website within the next 12 weeks.

3. What other public service has had extra money put into it since the start of the pandemic in March to the present day and how much public money have they had to put in to each public service?

To date, the UK Government has indicated that it will allocate just over £8.2 billion of additional funding to the Scottish Government in respect of the Covid pandemic. We have announced a series of measures, including the initial allocation of £2.4 billion in funding for Health and Social Care, £2.3 billion to help businesses, and £580 million for transport measures. Further details of funding for the initial series of commitments made by the Scottish Government have been provided in the Summer Budget Revision document, which was published on 27 May, and the Autumn Budget Revision document, which was published on 24 September.

The Summer Budget Revision document can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.scot/publications/2020-21-summer-budget-revision/
The Autumn Budget Revision document can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.scot/publications/2020-21-autumn-budget-revision/

As you will appreciate, Budget Revisions are necessarily a snapshot of the position at that time and this is a continually evolving picture. Additional details on the ongoing allocation of funding for the response to the Covid-19 emergency will be set out in the Spring budget revision later in this financial year.

4. Has the Scottish Government had to put in any additional public money to private companies and, if so, which ones and how much public money went into each one since the start of the pandemic in March to the present day?

Since the Coronavirus pandemic began, we have put in place a package of direct support for business to a total value of over £2.38 billion. This has included £972 million for rates relief and other non-domestic rates income measures, as well as small business, retail, hospitality and leisure grant schemes for which a budget of £1.172 million was allocated. These particular grant schemes were open for applications between late March and early July. Near final statistics on money paid through the grants were published on 10 September and are available on the Scottish Government website: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-business-support-fund-grant-statistics/.

A very small number of complex or contested applications will have been processed since that date and we will publish the final out turn position in due course. The grants were administered on behalf of Scottish Ministers by local authorities and the Scottish Government does not hold records of individual
payments made to businesses. We also allocated £185 million to an additional support fund, which comprised four elements. As of 26 August, the Creative, Tourism and Hospitality Enterprises Hardship Fund had awarded £23,507,000 to 1,893 businesses, and the Pivotal Enterprise Resilience Fund had made payments totalling £121,792,000 to 1,763 businesses. Final figures for the other two elements of the additional support fund are that the Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund paid out £11,346,000 to 5,673 individuals, and the Bed and Breakfasts Hardship Fund provided £1,212,000 to 404 businesses. A full list of grant recipients in the Creative, Tourism and Hospitality Enterprises Hardship Fund and Pivotal Enterprise Resilience Fund has been published on the Scottish Enterprise website and can be accessed on the Scottish enterprise website here: View the list of companies that received this grant support (Excel,
153Kb). All remaining funding following the completion of these funds has been reallocated to meet the emerging needs of business.

More recently, we have been working closely with COSLA and all local authorities to deliver the Restrictions Fund, through which we are providing support to employees and businesses during the period of restrictions. This includes closure grants of up to £4,310 for hospitality and other businesses in the central belt required to close by the regulations, and hardship grants of up to £2,155 for businesses that aren’t required to close by the regulations - such as pubs and restaurants out with the central belt, and some businesses in the hospitality supply chain. We are putting in place arrangements to record the numbers of applications received and payments made. Information for Closure and Hardships Funds, which applied for the period 9 October to 2 November, will be published on the Scottish Government website, and we will ensure this information is updated regularly.

Going forward, from 2 November Scotland’s Strategic Framework sets out the support available to businesses required to close by law, or required by law to modify their operations. This consists of a grant of £2,000 or £3,000 (depending on rateable value) for business required to close by law, and a grant of £1,400 or £2,100 (depending on rateable value) for businesses that remain open but are required to modify their operations by law.

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