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PM pledges billions more in aid for Polish firms hit by epidemic

01.04.2021 15:29
Poland's prime minister on Thursday pledged up to PLN 30 billion (USD 7.6 bn, EUR 6.5 bn) in further aid for companies as coronavirus infections surged to a new high.
Image: Henryk Niestrój
Image: Henryk NiestrójPixabay licence

Mateusz Morawiecki told reporters that help would be available to a wider range of sectors hit by a lockdown.

He added that government support to help businesses survive the virus crisis so far totalled over PLN 200 billion.

Morawiecki announced the latest aid plan as Poland reported a new record daily rise in coronavirus infections, confirming 35,251 new cases on Thursday, the most since the pandemic hit the country more than a year ago.

Poland’s authorities in March last year unveiled a EUR 47 billion stimulus package to shield the country from the coronavirus outbreak.

Morawiecki in November pledged further billions in help for firms hit by COVID-19 curbs amid a second wave of the pandemic.

A stimulus package known as Financial Shield 2.0 was expanded in February to cover a further nine industries, among them education, retail and entertainment.

Help includes non-refundable subsidies, downtime pay, exemptions from social insurance contributions and additional social security benefits for employees, according to officials.

(pk)

Source: PAP