A local businesswoman has said that the island must move past the sector based approach to government support during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan has established several support mechanisms for businesses and workers in an effort to save as many jobs as possible during the lockdown period.

Claire Christian, owner of Claire Christian Couture, is part of an online network offering advice and support to local businesses and communicating their concerns and questions to government.

Mrs Christian, while praising the effort of the government, said that schemes are ’not perfect’ and has left some individuals and business falling through the cracks.

During Sunday’s press briefing she said: ’It is crucial we look beyond a sector based approach and realise that we have to support everyone to ensure that we have sustainable economy when the Covid-19 crisis and lockdown restrictions are lifted.

’I and many others will continue to raise these issues and gaps in government support to the relevant department heads and ministers in the hope that the schemes are widened further to include everyone who desperately needs the support and to maintain the support through the crisis which we know will not end quickly.’

However, it is clear that the longer the lockdown goes on, some industries, particular the tourism sector will struggle more than most.

Enterprise Minister Laurence Skelly said that the situation is one that government is ’very conscious of, that industry will struggle for some time’.

He added: ’I don’t think there is any two ways to put that, but it is not just here on the Isle of Man.

’I think you have to look what is going to happen to travel globally and borders could be opened up, which will only be done if there is extreme confidence. But the point is, I don’t know if the public will be ready to travel anytime soon.’

Mrs Christian also spoke out against the state of the island’s economy before the pandemic occurred.

She said: ’We were struggling as an economy before this even hit, so people didn’t have a lot of cash reserved. So now we’re asking them to dip into them and it’s not necessarily there.

’We do understand the difficulties in setting these schemes up at the speed that they have, but it’s really [important] getting cash to these people.’