Day: May 12, 2020

Chancellor extends furlough scheme until October

The government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will remain open until the end of October, the Chancellor announced today.

  • Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will continue until end of October
  • furloughed workers across UK will continue to receive 80% of their current salary, up to £2,500
  • new flexibility will be introduced from August to get employees back to work and boost economy

In a boost to millions of jobs and businesses, Rishi Sunak said the furlough scheme would be extended by a further four months with workers continuing to receive 80% of their current salary.

As we reopen the economy (at least in England – Ed.), we need to support people to get back to work. From the start of August, furloughed workers will be able to return to work part-time with employers being asked to pay a percentage towards the salaries of their furloughed staff.

The employer payments will substitute the contribution the government is currently making, ensuring that staff continue to receive 80% of their salary, up to £2,500 a month.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “Our Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has protected millions of jobs and businesses across the UK during the outbreak – and I’ve been clear that I want to avoid a cliff edge and get people back to work in a measured way.

“This extension and the changes we are making to the scheme will give flexibility to businesses while protecting the livelihoods of the British people and our future economic prospects.”

New statistics published today revealed the job retention scheme has protected 7.5 million workers and almost 1 million businesses.

The scheme will continue in its current form until the end of July and the changes to allow more flexibility will come in from the start of August. More specific details and information around its implementation will be made available by the end of this month.

The government will explore ways through which furloughed workers who wish to do additional training or learn new skills are supported during this period. It will also continue to work closely with the Devolved Administrations to ensure the scheme supports people across the Union.

The Chancellor’s decision to extend the scheme, which will continue to apply across all regions and sectors in the UK economy, comes after the government outlined its plan for the next phase of its response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The scheme is just one part of the government’s world-leading economic response to coronavirus, including an unprecedented package for the self-employed, loans and guarantees that have so far provided billions of pounds in support, tax deferrals and grants for small businesses.

Today the UK government is also publishing new statistics that show businesses have benefitted from over £14 billion in loans and guarantees to support their cashflow during the crisis.

This includes 268,000 Bounce Back Loans worth £8.3 billion, 36,000 loans worth over £6 billion through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, and £359 million through the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme.

Mike Cherry, National Chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said: “The Job Retention Scheme is a lifeline which has been hugely beneficial in helping small employers keep their staff in work, and it’s extension is welcome.

“Small employers have told us that part-time furloughing will help them recover from this crisis and it is welcome that new flexibility is announced today.

BCC Director General Adam Marshall said: “The extension of the Job Retention Scheme will come as a huge help and a huge relief for businesses across the UK.

“The Chancellor is once again listening to what we’ve been saying, and the changes planned will help businesses bring their people back to work through the introduction of a part-time furlough scheme. We will engage with the Treasury and HMRC on the detail to ensure that this gives companies the flexibility they need to reopen safely.

“Over the coming months, the government should continue to listen to business and evolve the scheme in line with what’s happening on the ground. Further support may yet be needed for companies who are unable to operate for an extended period, or those who face reduced capacity or demand due to ongoing restrictions.”

Dame Carolyn Fairbairn, CBI Director-General, said: “The Chancellor is confronting a challenging balancing act deftly. As economic activity slowly speeds up, it’s essential that support schemes adapt in parallel.

“Extending the furlough to avoid a June cliff-edge continues the significant efforts made already and will protect millions of jobs.

“Introducing much needed flexibility is extremely welcome. It will prepare the ground for firms that are reawakening, while helping those who remain in hibernation. That’s essential as the UK economy revives step-by-step, while supporting livelihoods.

“Firms will, of course, want more detail on how they will contribute to the scheme in the future and will work with government to get this right.

“Above all, the path of the virus is unpredictable, and much change still lies ahead. The government must continue to keep a watchful eye on those industries and employees that remain at risk. All schemes will need to be kept under review to help minimise impacts on people’s livelihoods and keep businesses thriving.

“The greater the number of good businesses saved now, the easier it will be for the economy to recover.”

Commenting on the extension of the government’s job extension scheme today, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “We are pleased ministers have listened to unions and extended the job retention scheme to the autumn. This will be a big relief for millions.  

“Changing the rules to allow part-time working is key to enabling a gradual and safe return to work. And maintaining the rate at 80% is a win for the pay packets of working families.

“As the economic consequences of Covid-19 become clear, unions will keep pushing for a job guarantee scheme to make sure everyone has a decent job.”

Anneliese Dodds MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, said: “The furlough scheme is a lifeline for millions. The Government was right not to pull it away.

“It is welcome that the Chancellor has heeded the call by Labour, trade unions, and businesses for more flexibility in the scheme, to support employees to go back to work part-time.

“The government must clarify today when employers will be required to start making contributions, and how much they’ll be asked to pay. If every business is suddenly required to make a substantial contribution from the 1st August onwards, there is a very real risk that we will see mass redundancies.”

Extension to Furlough Scheme could cost the Government £70 billion

The Chancellor has extended the current Furlough scheme until the end of October but he now has a huge challenge to get this right, say leading tax and advisory firm Blick Rothenberg.

Heather Self a partner at the firm said: “He needs to achieve a “Goldilocks” effect – not too hot, and not too cold.  If he provides too much it will be very expensive and may discourage firms from reopening. If he provides too little thousands of people could lose their jobs.

She added: “It is going to be a turbulent time for the labour market in the Autumn. Some sectors, such as the hospitality and tourism sector, are likely to see significant redundancies, while others such as construction and financial services will be relieved to see a gradual winding-down of support.

From the announcement today, we now know that:

–          Support will be continued to the end of July in full, with employers required to contribute after that date.

–          Part time working will be permitted, but only for some employees

–          The same level of overall support – 80% of wages up to a maximum of £2500 a month – will be maintained

Heather said: ” As the furlough scheme is reduced the Government needs to incentivise business and come up with creative ideas about how business can keep going and retain staff.

“The Chancellor could not go on paying out billions of pounds indefinitely, and everyone understands that, but there needs to be much more joined up thinking between Government and business.”

So far, some 7.5m employees have been furloughed, at a cost approaching £10bn.

The expected costs to the end of July are likely to be around £50bn, with the extension at a reduced level to the end of October perhaps costing a further £20bn.  These are very significant sums, amounting to around 10% of total Government receipts.

As Britain seeks to get back to work, the pressures on different sectors will be very uneven.

While some sectors, such as construction and financial services, are getting back to work, others such as leisure and hospitality will be much slower to recover.

And the position in the tourism and heritage sectors is likely to become critical if they lose the whole of the Summer season.

Heather Self said: “Enabling part time work is welcome, as it will permit a gradual return to work.  But the Chancellor said this would only be available to businesses “currently using” the scheme – it is not clear what the cut-off date will be for businesses still considering whether they need to furlough employees.

“The Chancellor needs to pay attention to the needs of different sectors, difficult though this may be.  Leisure and hospitality businesses are unlikely to be able to cope with reopening fully by the end of July, and may need to contemplate redundancies.

“Additional support beyond the furlough scheme will be needed for a long time – whether loans such as the CBILS scheme, or grants, or incentives such as an increase in the Employment Allowance to encourage employers to maintain their staff levels, or even take on new employees.”

Peoples Assembly Scotland: Zoom meeting tonight

Over the recent period the Peoples Assembly Scotland, along with trades unions and other progressive groups, have rightly focused on the absence of support  for NHS workers which, coupled with governments across this island’s unpreparedness, has worsened the extent of the Covid 19 crisis.
However they are not the only group of workers for whom the crisis is changing both the nature, and perhaps the future, of their industries.
At its most recent meeting it was agreed to sponsor a number of “public” meetings to hear from those in other sectors whose members are facing similar challenges but whose stories are rarely the focus of the main stream media.
The first of these addressing the plight facing those who work offshore will be TONIGHT (Tuesday 12th May) at 7pm, the invitation below will facilitate entry to the meeting.
We will be welcoming RMT officer Jake Molloy along with UNITE Regional Officer, John Boland, as Chair and Vice Chair of the Offshore Coordinating Group who will be talking about the crisis facing workers with thousand’s of job losses looming in the North Sea. 
Its a crisis not just for those directly employed in oil and gas but across the offshore sector, their supply chains including ferries. As it appears that the industry is heading into recession join the Peoples Assemblies meeting to hear those who represent those workers affected and how the unions must address not just their immediate concerns but the long term effects on our economy .
Attached is the most recent report of the Offshore Coordinating Group “Crisis behind the Crisis”.
Phil McGarry  (Chairperson) Keith Stoddart (Secretary), 
Peoples Assembly Scotland

Join Zoom Meeting:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85108863460?pwd=SXlaVGx0cjYyVC83L2hrUzNFckZFQT09

Meeting ID: 851 0886 3460
Password: 562022

Letters: Public services more vital than ever

Dear Editor

The National Health Service has always been valued as a people’s organisation. This value has always been appreciated – but never more so than today.

This lesson on the importance of people’s services shows the way our society must be run. If the NHS is vital, so are gas, electricity and water. As are the railways, buses and trams. Make them public services, too – serving the people.

The value of the NHS to the people is immense: a publicly funded service, available ever day.

Also ever day, 30 million people travel to and from their places of work using rail, bus and tram.

Work, in order to live, is a necessity. These transport industries must also become part of a fully funded, publically owned service with the NHS. It can be arranged and organised as a public service.

The NHS has been our lifeline. People have always guarded the principle of a service of the people.

How right that is!

Tony Delahoy 

Cyrenians FareShare depot in Leith redistributes record food load

In the past month, the Cyrenians FareShare depot in Leith has redistributed a record-breaking 164 tonnes of food in response to a huge increase in demand during the covid19 pandemic – over a three-fold increase compared to April last year.

This week local MSP Ben Macpherson visited on his daily walk to thank staff and volunteers for safely supporting his constituents, and so many others across the Lothians, at this challenging time.

Cyrenians tackles the causes and consequences of homelessness. Building community through food and tackling food poverty is a large part of their work – through their FareShare depot in Leith, the charity redistributes surplus food from the supply chain to charities and community groups across Central and South East Scotland.

Lynne Collie, Service Manager, praised the response from the wider community: “Alongside our emergency fundraising appeal, we put a call-out at the start of this pandemic for food producers and suppliers to get in touch if they could help out so that we could meet demand.

The response has been phenomenal, and I would like to thank each and every person who has donated food, money, and time to our depot.

“I’d also like to pay tribute to my team of staff and volunteers, who have done an amazing job in scaling up the operation to meet the increased demand.”

In addition to this, Cyrenians Community Cook School, situated on Jane Street opposite their Fareshare depot, has been transformed into a production kitchen supporting their efforts to tackle food inequality.

Since the pandemic hit, the cook school have been cooking on average 700 healthy, freezer-ready meals a day, with support from local chefs, to distribute to those at-risk and frontline workers across the city.

Ewan Aitken, CEO of Cyrenians, said, “This pandemic is highlighting the stark inequalities that exist in society – those trapped in poverty are at greater risk of both the virus itself and the economic fallout, and we’re seeing more and more people making impossible choices, like whether to put food on the table or whether to pay for bills or rent.

“It’s also highlighted just how interdependent we all are, and I hope that, as we rebuild following this crisis, that legacy will endure.

“We can prevent homelessness, and it is incumbent on all of us – from the grassroots to national governments – to do so. I would like to thank the Scottish Government amongst others for their support to get food to those who need it.”

Ben Macpherson MSP said, “It was uplifting to see first-hand what staff and volunteers at the Cyrenians FareShare depot in Leith are doing to safely help many of my constituents and people in need across the Lothians, supported by funding from the Scottish Government and generous donations from many different companies and individuals.

“I’m inspired by the work that the Cyrenians does both in and from my constituency, and am grateful to everyone involved with FareShare for supporting vulnerable people and communities at this difficult time”

To find out more about Cyrenians’ emergency appeal, please visit: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/Covid19CrisisAppeal

Girlguiding Scotland launches Guiding at Hame challenge

To support young people and their parents while at home, Girlguiding Scotland, the leading charity for girls and young women, has launched the ‘Guiding at Hame’ challenge – a weekly online challenge with activities for children and adults alike to get stuck into.

With face to face meetings no longer taking place, Girlguiding Scotland is delivering its unique programme in new and innovative ways. They issued a challenge on 1 May, with activities suitable for anyone from age 5 and up. New activities are released every Friday, and the whole challenge reflects the six themes of Girlguiding’s programme: Know Myself, Express Myself, Be Well, Have Adventures, Take Action and Skills For My Future. In true guiding style, anyone who takes part in the challenge can earn the ‘Guiding at Hame’ badge.

The challenge is open to everyone – you don’t need to be a member – just download the activities from Girlguiding Scotland’s website to take part. This is a great way to give guiding a go and get a taster of what’s on offer.

Scottish Chief Commissioner, Moira McKenna, said: “Girlguiding Scotland is a resilient community and we want to support as many children and young people across Scotland right now with our new Guiding at Hame challenge.

“Our programme is all about empowering girls and young women to try new things, care for those in their communities and have fun outside of school. None of this could happen without our amazing volunteers and we want to say a big thanks to them for keeping guiding going during this challenging time.

“It’s everyday folk who are working hard to make sure that families are supported and we hope that those taking part in the activities will be inspired to join our guiding community in the future.”

The challenge can be found on Girlguiding Scotland’s website in the new ‘Guiding at Hame’ hub with advice on how to move to virtual guiding meetings and blogs on wellbeing and resilience resources for children and young people.

Girlguiding Scotland is encouraging anyone who takes part in the challenge to tag them on social media @GirlguidingScot.

The activities can also be done with Girlguiding units. Already, many Girlguiding Scotland volunteers have been delivering virtual guiding with girls, running their weekly meetings using technology like Zoom and Whatsapp.

Girlguiding is open to all girls aged 5 to 18, giving them the opportunity to explore new interests and build their confidence.

For more information visit www.girlguidingscotland.org.uk.

Holyrood committee to investigate Scottish Government’s coronavirus testing strategy

The Scottish Government’s testing strategy during the coronavirus pandemic is to be investigated by the Health and Sport Committee.

The Parliament Committee is seeking views to find out what role testing should play in helping to tackle the pandemic, and what infrastructure is required to deliver the Government’s test, trace and isolate strategy it aims to introduce by the end of May.

Over the coming weeks, the Committee is undertaking a series of short inquiries into the Scottish Government’s response to the pandemic. On Thursday they will look at the issue of PPE and they are also looking into the Government’s preparedness to deal with any potential ‘second wave’ of the virus, or future pandemic.

This week, the Committee also launched an inquiry into the particular issues faced by care homes during this crisis.

Lewis Macdonald MSP, Health and Sport Committee Convener, said: “The Government’s testing strategy is absolutely pivotal in tackling this crisis and helping to ease in any meaningful way the restrictions on our lives we are all facing.

“The Scottish Government have outlined their wish to adopt a test, trace and isolate strategy from the end of May but we want to make sure the infrastructure is in place to help achieve this.

“We want to look into testing capacity across Scotland and the introduction of antibody tests.

“We’ve seen the success of other countries testing strategies, such as South Korea, Germany and New Zealand, and we want to investigate the science behind our testing approach and whether more could and should have been done to lessen the terrible impact of this virus on our society.”

The coronavirus testing questionnaire is available here. It closes on 18th May.    

The care homes survey is available here. It closes on 20th May.

For more information on the work of the Health and Sport Committee, visit the Scottish Parliament website.

Money worries? Financial support and debt advice available

29% of people in Scotland report being worried about their finances having already felt the negative impact of Coronavirus.

People in Edinburgh facing financial difficulty as a result of the Coronavirus outbreak are being encouraged to seek guidance on the help available to them.

Research commissioned by the Scottish Government in partnership with YouGov has revealed that nearly a third of people across Scotland (29%) have already felt the financial strain of the current Covid-19 outbreak and are worried about its impact.

The survey of over 1000 respondents also shows that 71% of people in Scotland are concerned about the lasting impact on their finances.

These findings follow the launch of a new campaign by the Scottish Government and the Citizens Advice network that aims to raise awareness of the financial support available to people in the Capital.

The campaign provides information and advice on issues including rent and mortgage payments, energy bills, council tax, and benefits people may be entitled to.

People throughout Edinburgh are able to access this advice online, by contacting their local Citizens Advice Bureau or getting in touch with any of the capital’s independent advice providers including Granton Information Centre and CHAI.

Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government Aileen Campbell said: “There is no doubt that this is a difficult and worrying time for everyone. Today’s findings further underline the need to provide people across Scotland with the correct support, guidance and information to help them with their finances.

“We need to ensure that people are aware of the support that they are entitled to from the DWP and I would encourage everyone across Scotland who is facing financial difficulty to look into what additional help is available to them.

“That’s why we’ve been working with the Citizens Advice network in Scotland to create this central source of information – with everything from guidance on benefits, right through to what you can do if you are worried about paying your mortgage or rent.”

Adam McVey, City of Edinburgh Council Leader, said: “Work has been ramping up across Edinburgh to make sure our hardest hit citizens get the help they need. From welfare, council tax and debt support for those facing financial hardship, to food supplies for our most vulnerable families, we’ve been pooling resources to direct help to those who are in crisis.

“Our five Council Resilience Centres are providing a base for officers to work from so that they can target online and phone support for those facing hardship or worried about homelessness. And we’re building up a picture of how our most at-risk residents are impacted, so that we can develop longer-term measures through the Edinburgh Poverty Commission.

“It’s going to be so important that we work together to tackle poverty and, in these uncertain times, we know financial worries will weigh on people’s minds. Don’t suffer alone. Know that help is available and get in touch with Citizens Advice or our own Advice Shop for help.”

The Citizen’s Advice network website features dedicated COVID-19 content along with a telephone helpline. Those who have been financially impacted by the coronavirus outbreak and require free, confidential, financial support, can visit cas.org.uk or call 0800 028 1456.

Local Citizens Advice Bureaux are situated around the country. To find your local service, simply enter your postcode at cas.org.uk/bureaux
Free, professional help is also available from Granton Information Centre and Community Help & Advice Initiative (CHAI) who, along with Citizens Advice Edinburgh, deliver debt advice across the capital.
For more information, check out the city council’s advice pages on welfare support, financial worries and debt information.

Missing man appeal: THOMAS FOUND

UPDATE: Thomas has since been found safe and well

Police are appealing for information from the public to trace a man from the local area. Thomas Foley Smith (29) was last seen at the Cairn Hotel, Windsor Street around 12 noon on Friday (8 May).

He is described as being white with short brown hair. He has links to the Muirhouse and Abbeyhill areas

Members of the public are asked not to approach Mr Smith however Police Scotland would like to reassure people that considerable and extensive efforts are being put into locating him.

Anyone with information or sightings should contact Police Scotland immediately on 101.