Financial support for businesses in respect of Covid-19 pandemic (FOI)

​​Request 690065865​

1.

Can the Government of Jersey please list the names of those companies and business which received financial support during and in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, and how much they received?

2.

Can the Government of Jersey please list the names of those companies and business who have yet to pay the Social Security and GST payments which were deferred during, and in the aftermath of, the Covid-19 pandemic? Please also include the outstanding amount next to each business or company listed.

Response

1.

The Government of Jersey provided broad support to a significant number of businesses during and in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, through a number of schemes and deferrals to payments (e.g. social security contributions).  Providing a complete listing of the companies and business that received financial support would require extraction and manipulation of data to produce new information. A Scheduled Public Authority is not required to manipulate and create new data sets. It has been estimated that the cost of extracting the data would exceed the cost limit provisions set out in the Freedom of Information (Costs) (Jersey) Regulations 2014. Therefore Articles 3 and 16 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) law 2011 have been applied. 

Some information, which in some cases includes business names and level of support received, is publicly available on the Gov.je website and can be accessed via the links below: Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) 2011 has also been applied. 

• ​Government support for businesses 
• Fiscal Stimulus Fund
• Visitor Attractions and Events End of Scheme Review.pdf 
• Covid Support Scheme Statistics - Datasets - Government of Jersey Open Data
• Blue Islands Limited: Provision of a secured loan

Further information can be found in the States of Jersey Annual Reports and accounts, which can be accessed via the following link:

Annual Report and Accounts for the States of Jersey​

2.

This information is exempt from disclosure under Article 29 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011, which states that information is absolutely exempt if the disclosure is prohibited by an enactment. Article 8 of the Revenue Administration (Jersey) Law 2019 prohibits the disclosure of any information obtained under a Revenue Law for any purpose other than that for which it was obtained. 

Articles applied 

Article 3 - Meaning of “information held by a public authority”

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a)     it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b)     it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 16 - A scheduled public authority may refuse to supply information if cost excessive

(1) A scheduled public authority that has been requested to supply information may refuse to supply the information if it estimates that the cost of doing so would exceed an amount determined in the manner prescribed by Regulations. 

Article 23 - Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.

Article 29 - Other prohibitions or restrictions

Information is absolutely exempt information if the disclosure of the information by the scheduled public authority holding it –

(a) is prohibited by or under an enactment;

(b) is incompatible with a European Union or an international obligation that applies to Jersey; or

(c) would constitute or be punishable as a contempt of court.