After 18 long months shielding from the medical impact of Covid-19, it is so good to be back in Bishopsgate. I have to commend all of those essential workers who have continued to plough on throughout the pandemic in the Square Mile. You are all heroes and the country owes you a debt of gratitude. I must particularly mention, Emma Watson and her team at Liverpool Street Station who have done a remarkable job keeping essential workers moving through our major transport hub, whilst continuing to make improvement to the station.
Small and Medium-size enterprises represent 98% of all business in the City of London. They are our cafes, our newsagents, our opticians and our florists, all of whom have been stunned by the pandemic and related national lockdowns. Many of these businesses could not survive the pandemic without additional support and I was pleased to join colleagues in sponsoring a new £50m Covid-19 recovery fund. This was available to SMEs who could apply for up to £100,000 as long as they could demonstrate that they had premises in the City since prior to the pandemic and had taken reasonable steps to reduce costs where possible. Helping businesses navigate the application process has taken some time, but the overwhelming messages of relief and gratitude have made it all worthwhile. As the footfall continues to increase, I hope you will all join me in supporting our local businesses as much as possible. I will certainly be trying to highlight some of my favourites via this site, so watch this space.
One other piece of good news I heard today was from TfL who confirmed that Bishopsgate is actually now the second busiest street in the country for cyclists. Part of the planning for the re-emergence of the City post-pandemic has been to challenge how we can build back better. We all know the air quality in the City is poor. Those who are able to walk or cycle to work seem happy to do so, certainly in the summer months, but we have been planning redesigns of street space and introducing more green space, such as the redesign of Exchange Square on the Broadgate Estate and the reopening of Finsbury Circle, which at 2.2 hectares is the largest open space within the City’s boundaries.
Watch this space for more, but please do reach out if there are things that concern you as you return to Bishopsgate or things you think could and should be done better. For now though, it feels like we are finally on the road to recovery.
