Business Times reports that while the alcohol industry and restaurants count the costs of tighter pandemic restrictions, organised business says additional income support will soon be on its way for those businesses that have been disrupted.

The new level 4 restrictions include a fourth liquor ban since the end of March last year and a prohibition on dining in restaurants. SAB and Vinpro are taking legal action against the liquor ban. Following a Wednesday meeting of the National Economic Development & Labour Council (Nedlac), Martin Kingston, chair of the steering committee of Business for SA (B4SA), said that although he could not speak for the government or the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), there had been a “very constructive discussion” among all parties. He advised that the government had made it clear during the discussions at Nedlac that it would again implement Covid-19 temporary employee/employer relief scheme (Ters) benefits. But, he indicated that the government needed to work out how far the money available can go without prejudicing the stability of the UIF. “There is certainly enough for the next two weeks and, we believe, for considerably longer. We are just talking about the modalities, fine-tuning certain aspects of the scheme, who it applies to and for how long it will endure,” Kingston indicated. He added there was “an acknowledgement by all sides that there was a need to continue providing support, in some cases retrospective support, for example for the events industry and then particularly the leisure, hospitality and tourism sector”.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nick Wilson at BusinessLive (paywall access only)

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