Hungary. The European Commission has approved a €36.3 million Czech scheme to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the primary agricultural sector affected by the coronavirus. The public support, which will take the form of direct grants, will be open to SMEs active in the primary agricultural production sector (farmers). The aid is specifically intended to reduce the outstanding amounts of bank operating loans to these SMEs and will cover up to 50% of the outstanding loan amount. This measure should make it possible to support around 5,000 SMEs. The purpose of the scheme is to address farmers’ liquidity needs and help them to continue their activities during and after the epidemic.
Ireland. The Commission has approved a €250 million programme to support micro and small enterprises affected by the coronavirus crisis (‘Irish Restart Grant’). The scheme was approved under the Temporary Framework for State Aid measures adopted by the Commission on 19 March 2020, as amended on 3 April 2020 and 8 May 2020. The support will take the form of direct grants equivalent to the local tax on the company’s commercial property for the year 2019, up to a maximum of €10,000 per company. The aim of this programme is to provide cash assistance to micro and small enterprises that have suffered a loss of turnover due to the crisis. The support will help these businesses reopen their doors and reemploy their staff. The subsidies are well below the ceiling of €800,000 per company.
In addition, the Commission approved a €200 million Irish aid scheme to support investments in research and development (R&D), testing and production of products relevant to coronavirus. The public support will take the form of direct grants and repayable advances and will be open to enterprises with more than 10 employees operating in the manufacturing and/or internationally traded services sectors. The objective of the scheme is to improve and accelerate the development and production of products directly related to the pandemic (vaccines, hospital and medical equipment). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)