// Grants of £2100 available for businesses in Tier 2 restriction areas of England to be made available
// The Job Support Scheme, which will replace the furlough scheme, has also been made more generous
Billions of pounds of extra help has been announced for businesses, including retailers, and workers hit by the latest coronavirus restrictions.
The package, announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak today, includes making the Job Support Scheme – which replaces the current furlough system from next month – more generous.
There will also be grants of £2100 available for businesses in Tier 2 restriction areas of England, although these will be primarily aimed at helping hospitality and leisure venues which have seen takings plummet due to a restrictions on households mixing and plummeting footfall.
READ MORE:
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- Chancellor unveils new Job Support Scheme to replace furlough scheme
In a move which could be worth more than £1 billion, these grants will also be available retrospectively for areas which have already been subject to restrictions, and come on top of higher levels of additional business support for areas moving into Tier 3.
Around 150,000 business in England could be eligible, the Treasury said.
The move to make the payments retrospective is aimed at heading off criticism from areas of northern England which have been under restrictions for months.
The Job Support Scheme – the plan designed to replace the furlough system from November 1 – will be made more generous across the country.
Instead of only being open to people in “viable” jobs working a third of their normal hours, it will now cover employees doing just 20 per cent of their usual work.
The amount that employers are required to pay to top up their wages has also been reduced to just five per cent of unworked hours, down from 33 per cent.
Extra help for the self-employed will see the amount covered by grants increase from 20 per cent of profits to 40 per cent, meaning the maximum payout will increase from £1875 to £3750.
This will amount to a potential further £3.1 billion of support to the self-employed through November to January, with a further grant to follow covering February to April.
“I’ve always said that we must be ready to adapt our financial support as the situation evolves, and that is what we are doing today,” Sunak said.
“These changes mean that our support will reach many more people and protect many more jobs.
“I know that the introduction of further restrictions has left many people worried for themselves, their families and communities.
“I hope the government’s stepped-up support can be part of the country pulling together in the coming months.”
with PA Wires
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