Treasurer reveals when federal business support will end in Victoria

Business owners have been told to “plan for their futures” with COVID-19 disaster payments and federal contributions to business support payments set to end when Victoria reaches 80 per cent double-dose vaccination.

There are currently about 600,000 Victorians receiving COVID-19 disaster payments of up to $750 per week.

That payment will end two weeks after Victoria reaches 80 per cent double-dose vaccination.

The payment will be decreased to $450 for the first week after the target is reached, and the following week it will reduce to $320.

“After that you will be relying on the welfare system if need be,” Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told Neil Mitchell.

Mr Frydenberg also revealed the plan for federal contributions to jointly-funded business assistance payments in Victoria.

He says federal contributions will begin to “transition” once the state reached 70 per cent double dose vaccination, and come to an end once 80 per cent of people in the state are fully-vaccinated.

NEIL MITCHELL: “If I’m running a pub and there are density limits or I’m running a hairdresser and there are density limits, whatever, it’s going to be hard to get my business running again. Will there be any assistance from the federal government for those businesses?”

JOSH FRYDENBERG: “We’re not looking to be providing specific business support, as we are now, after 80 per cent. We’ve been pretty clear about that.”

The Treasurer says any support after Victoria reaches the 80 per cent double-dose milestone will be up to the state government.

“The idea of what we’re announcing today is to give people some time to plan for their futures,” he said.

Victoria is expected to reach the 80 per cent double-dose milestone on November 5.

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Image: Sam Mooy/Getty