The Covid Wage Supplement will continue to be provided until the end of the year, so the government will be giving maximum aid to companies that continue to experience the most negative impact on their revenue due to the pandemic.
At a news conference addressed by the Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Sustainable Development Miriam Dalli and the Minister for Finance and Labor Clyde Caruana, it was explained how by the end of the year the government will continue to assist all companies. This is in a process that gradually from after June will be reducing the dependence on the subsidy for those companies that will be exposed to the least negative financial impact. At the same time, these companies will be benefiting from aid schemes to enable them to invest in their growth.
“We want to help Maltese companies be more competitive in the future. During these months, we have continued discussions with stakeholders and representatives of different sectors of the Maltese enterprise, in order to jointly design a number of initiatives and schemes that will support our businesses in the crucial months ahead, Said Minister Dalli. He explained how beyond the direct aid that the government, through Malta Enterprise, is extending, it is being given visibility to help enterprises plan ahead.
Miriam Dalli stressed that alternative measures will be introduced to increase aid to Maltese companies and enterprises, so that it can regenerate and invest in its growth. The direct aid being given to businesses in the first quarter of this year amounts to € 70 million. Among them are rent payments that business owners started receiving earlier this month, with an initial grant of € 5.5 million. Beyond € 70 million, total rental aid is expected to reach € 12 million,
Minister of Finance and Labor Clyde Caruana said that over the past year the government has given no less than € 360 million in aid through this Covid Wage Supplement benefit. This means approximately three percent of our country’s gross domestic product. Minister Caruana explained how, if the government had not intervened with the many measures announced during the past months, the fall in the gross domestic product of our country would have been much greater than what was announced in days gone by – that of 7% in real terms, and 5.7% in nominal terms. Through this measure alone, the government has managed to reduce this blow by a third and save thousands of jobs.
