Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing bridging finance for employers to cover ongoing payment of national insurance contributions and pension costs for employees on furlough during the covid-19 outbreak in order to safeguard jobs during periods of business closure.

Under the extension from November, employer contributions for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) have returned to the level they were in August, which is lower than the previous level in September and October. Employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and pension contributions are the only required contributions under the extension to the CJRS. For an average claim, this accounts for just 5 per cent of total employment costs or £70 per employee per month. Many small employers can benefit from the Employment Allowance for support with their NICs bill, allowing eligible employers to reduce their annual National Insurance liability by up to £4,000.

The CJRS is only one element of a comprehensive package of support for businesses. This includes access to affordable, Government backed finance through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBLS) for large firms, along with the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBL) for small and micro enterprises. As of 13 December, these schemes have already provided over £68bn in guaranteed loans and provide vital support across all sectors of the UK economy for businesses who have been impacted by coronavirus.

We have guaranteed the devolved administrations an additional £16.8 billion of resource funding this year to help them respond to coronavirus. This means at least £3bn of additional funding for the Northern Ireland Executive.