UPDATED: Boots UK received £136m in COVID advance payments
Boots UK was allocated £136 million in advance funding “from the NHS” last year, the multiple has reported.*
Updates as of May 21:
A Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee spokesperson told C+D today (May 21) that it is “awaiting clarification from Boots on the figures and statements in [its] financial return”.
“The situation on the £370m COVID-related advance payments is unchanged: contractors in England have not yet been asked to pay anything back and we are in negotiations about the future of the loans, which we do not believe the sector should have to pay back,” they added.
C+D had previously attributed the £136m advance payment mentioned in Boots’ annual report to funding coming from the NHS in England only, while Boots had referred to funding coming from “the NHS” in its report.
C+D has approach Boots for further clarifications.
Boots UK reportedly took “advantage of certain government programmes to alleviate the additional cost and cash burdens arising as a result of COVID-19”, it said in its annual report and financial statements made up to August 31 2020, published on Companies House on Tuesday (May 18).
It revealed that it had received £136m in advance funding from the NHS, “which is repayable by way of offsetting against future payments to the NHS”.
Boots had already paid back £25m and £111m “remained on the balance sheet as [of] August 31 2020”, it said in the report.
C+D has asked Boots how much of the outstanding £111m loan the multiple has yet to pay back.
Business rate holidays and furlough scheme
Most Boots branches remained opened during the pandemic, but more than 100 pharmacies, mainly located in high streets, train stations and airport locations were temporarily closed as of May 2020, according to the report.
A Boots UK spokesperson told C+D last year that employees working at those branches would be deployed to nearby Boots pharmacies, or they would be furloughed and asked to stay at home.
Boots received £36m through the government’s furlough scheme and £11m for protective equipment to use at its branches, according to its financial report.
The multiple, which according to the report operated 2,336 branches as of August 31 last year, also reported a £55m reduction in business rates for the 2020 financial year.
Mr Sunak announced in March last year that all retailers were exempt from paying business rates for 12 months.
Turnaround of Boots UK a “top priority”
The multiple reported a 0.8% decrease in pharmacy revenue to £2.3m as of August 31 last year.
Walgreens Boots Alliance – Boots UK’s parent company – said last month that its “top priority” is to “turnaround Boots UK and return it to profitable growth”.
Walgreens Boots Alliance has attributed a 13.4% profit drop for the December-February period to “lower UK retail sales and pharmacy volumes”, as a result of COVID-19.
*This story was updated on May 21 to reflect that Boots received £136m advance funding “from the NHS”.
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