A PET groomer in the Port says she is at breaking point after her business was turned down for government and council help.

Christina O'Donnell, who owns Pawsitively Purrfect in Port Glasgow, has seen 95 per cent of her trade wiped out because of Covid restrictions.

She is adhering to the rules by only offering a welfare service, but feels she should receive financial support.

Christina said: "We have not been asked to close, so I don't qualify for a closed grant.

"I was turned down for a restrictive opening grant, even though I am losing 95 per cent of my business.

"I applied for a discretionary grant from the council and was turned down.

"I feel angry and disheartened, it's like we don't matter.

"Restaurants can provide a takeaway service and employ three delivery drivers and because they are classed as closed, they get the full grant."

Port councillor Jim MacLeod supported Christina and helped her to appeal against the council's decision but she says this was unsuccessful.

Stuart McMillan MSP raised her case with the Scottish Government, but again Christina was turned down.

Christina added: "I contacted Nicola Sturgeon on four occasions and only recently received an acknowledgement.

"I've asked Stuart McMillan to again raise with the First Minister the discretionary grants, especially now that we are closed for another month.

"For a lot of small businesses, the discretionary grant is just not good enough.

"Councils interpret the guidelines differently right across the country.

"The government want you abide by the rules but they don't offer any help."

Christina, who has owned the premises for four years, is determined to keep her business afloat.

She said: "It's taken blood, sweat and tears to get to this stage and I'm not going down without a fight.

"I've worked hard for this."

The Scottish Government says it has allocated more than £3 billion to support businesses across Scotland since the start of the pandemic.

A spokeswoman added: "The Strategic Framework Business Fund provides monthly grants for businesses required by law to close or to significantly modify their operations.

"In addition, our £60 million local authority discretionary fund is empowering local authorities to direct funding to specific groups or sectors within their areas.

"The use of this funding is entirely at the discretion of local authorities based on the specific needs of their local economies.”

The council says Christina was contacted on January 28 and told that her application could now be considered, but she says the way her accounts are prepared will exclude her.

Christina told the Telegraph: "They said they would re-open the application however the criteria states you must have accredited accounts, even though legally as a sole trader it's not required.

"I do my own so they're not accredited."

A spokesman for Inverclyde Council said: "We understand the difficulties being faced by businesses and we’re doing all we can to support them during these challenging times.

"We administer grants on behalf of the government and in accordance with national eligibility criteria.

"We had to initially suspend the Covid-19 Discretionary Fund due to a high volume of applications received for the money that was available.

"The government has since announced its intention to provide additional funding.

"In light of that, we will aim to reopen the fund to new applications as soon as we can.

"Those who applied after the temporary suspension of the fund will be contacted directly when we are in a position to consider those applications.

"More information about the help and support currently available to businesses and those who are self-employed is available on the ‘Business support and advice’ page of the coronavirus section of the council website."