Self-employment Income Support Scheme

Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury Excerpts

Tuesday 5th May 2020 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that freelance workers can access adequate funds through the welfare system until payments under the COVID-19 Self-employment Income Support Scheme begin.

The Question was considered in a Virtual Proceeding via video call.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Lord Callanan) (Con)]

My Lords, we have temporarily relaxed the application of the minimum income floor for all self-employed universal credit claimants affected by Covid-19. A drop in earnings will therefore be directly reflected in a claimant’s award, enabling them to follow the PHE guidance on social distancing. Claimants may also benefit from other changes, including the £20 increase in the universal credit standard allowance and the increases to local housing allowance.

[Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (LD)]

I declare an interest as a trustee of the Lowry and One Dance UK. We are very concerned about the ability of freelancers to access adequate funds until support is made available in June. Our all-important creative industries are a sector hit particularly hard; one-third of people in this sector are freelance and some are ineligible for any of the Government’s schemes. Will the Minister consider a rapid interim fund or grant to bridge the income gap for those affected and, as the Federation of Entertainment Unions suggests, a new freelance worker income support scheme for those falling through the cracks?

[Lord Callanan]

I apologise to the noble Baroness; she was breaking up so I did not quite catch all of her question. However, I think she was talking about the creative industries. Work in these industries is treated in the same way for universal credit as all other forms of self-employed work. We are aware that many who are self-employed—particularly those whose earnings are seasonal and often fluctuate from month to month—need to budget and plan for this; universal credit takes account of that by varying its payments from month to month.

Industrial Strategy

Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury Excerpts

Wednesday 19th July 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

There is no doubt that government procurement is critical; for example, in the construction industry. For example, Crossrail has built into a number of its contracts requirements for apprenticeship training and for using new technologies and small businesses. There is no doubt that procurement can be extremely important.

[Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (LD)]

My Lords, I congratulate the Government on their commitment in the Green Paper to an early deal for the creative industries sector, but how are they planning to support skills in that sector, which are so important, particularly given the prospect of Brexit, when they are not covered by the innovation and research budget? Is the DfE involved in discussion and happy to allow creative companies flexibility in their use of the apprenticeship levy?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

The noble Baroness probably knows that Sir Peter Bazalgette will produce a paper for us on the creative industries. I am sure that he will make a number of recommendations about how we develop skills to support the creative industries. We should hear from him within a couple of months.