Protecting Jobs, Businesses and livelihoods.

Another briefing, this one on the announcements Chancellor Rishi Sunak made today. It reads as follows.

"Protecting jobs, businesses and livelihoods as we begin to kickstart our economy
Our top priority has always been to support people, protect jobs and businesses through this crisis. The furlough and self-employment schemes have been a lifeline for millions of people and businesses.

Moving into the next phase of our response, we are focussed on not just on saving lives, but also saving livelihoods. As we begin to re-open our country and kickstart our economy, these schemes will adjust to ensure those who are able to work can do so, while remaining amongst the most comprehensive and generous in the world.

The Chancellor has today announced that the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme will be extended for three months with a second and final grant. Self-employed workers will be eligible for further support worth 70 per cent of their average monthly trading profits, capped at £6,570 in total.

The Chancellor also set out more details on how the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will continue to support jobs and business as people return to work. We have already extended the scheme until the end of October – that’s a total eight months of support. From 1 July, businesses will be given the flexibility to bring furloughed employees back part time – a month earlier than planned – and then from 1 August, the scheme will be slowly tapered so that employers begin to contribute towards those costs and to reflect that people will be returning to work.

We stood behind Britain’s businesses and workers as we came into this crisis and we stand behind them as we come through the other side. We will continue to do everything we can to ensure people can pay their bills and put food on the table – as people continue to stay alert, to control the virus and save lives.

We are protecting people’s jobs, and supporting businesses and livelihoods by:
  • Extending the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme for three months – so that people will be able to claim a second and final grant in August. Individuals whose livelihoods are adversely affected by coronavirus will be eligible for further support worth 70 per cent of their average monthly trading profits, capped at £6,570 in total. The eligibility criteria are the same for both grants, and individuals will need to confirm that their business has been adversely affected by coronavirus. An individual does not need to have claimed the first grant to receive the second grant; for example, they may only have been adversely affected by coronavirus in this later phase.
     
  • Setting out details on how the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will continue to support jobs and business as people return to work. In June and July, nothing will change for employers and the Government will continue to pay 80 per cent of people’s salaries. From August, the level of the grant will be slowly reduced and employers will be required to top up the government payment to ensure employees receive 80 per cent of their normal pay, up to a monthly cap of £2,500, throughout.

    • From July, businesses can bring furloughed employees back part time. This is a month earlier than previously announced to help support people back to work. Employers will be able to claim the furlough grant for the proportion of the employees’ normal hours they are not working – but they must pay their employees for the hours they are working. The Government will continue to pay 80 per cent of wages up to £2,500, plus employer National Insurance and pension contribution.
       
    • From August, the job retention scheme will be slowly tapered to reflect that people will be returning to work. The government will pay 80 per cent of wages up to a cap of £2,500, but employers will start paying employer National Insurance and pension contributions.
       
    • From September, the government will pay 70 per cent of wages up to a cap of £2,190. Employers will be asked to pay the remaining 10 per cent, in addition to employer National Insurance and pension contributions.
       
    • From October, the government will pay 60 per cent of wages up to a cap of £1,875. Employers will be asked to pay the remaining 20 per cent, in addition to employer National Insurance and pension contributions.
The furlough and self-employment schemes have been a lifeline for millions of people and businesses:
  • 8.4 million jobs have been protected through our Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which would otherwise have been at risk. Around 1 million firms have benefitted from this support, at a value of £15 billion.
     
  • 2.3 million claims have been submitted for the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, at a value of £6.8 billion.
     
  • Bounce Back Loans: Over 600,000 loans worth more than £18.5 billion.
     
  • Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme: 43,000 companies have loans worth over £8 billion.
     
  • Over 68,000 businesses have benefitted from Time To Pay. 
     
  • Our overall package to support people with welfare payments is now worth over £8 billion. 
     
  • Mortgage holidays: 1.8 million holidays granted, equivalent to 1 in 6 mortgages. And we’ve extended this by 3 months.

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