For a year now, our businesses didn’t had it easy. Because of the fight against the corona virus, the government has taken measures that made it difficult for many businesses to continue to function normally. The Minister for small and medium-sized companies, Lex Delles, has therefore created a variety of aid packages to help businesses, but also independent entrepreneurs, to get through the crisis and to be able to restart as soon as the crisis is over. The aid packages have been regularly adjusted and extended to adapt to the development of the pandemic and the needs of the different sectors.
Thus, since March, the following aid packages have been put in place to help businesses: In a first phase, a stabilisation package of 10.4 billion euros was decided. In a second phase, the “New Start Lëtzebuerg” was added, with a financial package of 800 million euros. However, the most important instrument by far, was and is without a doubt short-time work, in which great importance was attached in ensuring that none of the wages affected fell below the threshold of the social minimum wage. There has also been direct aid amounting to over 200 million euros paid out to self-employed entrepreneurs. This has been done through a first direct aid of 2500 euros and a following second direct aid of 3000 to 4000 euros. Direct aid packages have also been disbursed to small and medium-sized enterprises: A first direct aid of 5000 euros for the affected enterprises and then a further amount of 5000 euros, respectively 12500 euros. Minister Lex Delles has also introduced measures to encourage the restart of vulnerable sectors. This has been done through direct aid for the retail sector, various activities from the craft sector and through the “Fonds de relance et de solidarité”, which has mainly targeted the Horeca, the event and tourism sectors.
Minister Lex Delles knows how important the small and medium-sized companies are for our society and he will continue to help businesses that have fallen into difficulties due to the economic situation caused by Covid-19 and not due to their own misconduct. Therefore, he will again take measures as soon as its proves necessary.
