Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the (a) Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and (b) Self Employment Income Support Scheme beyond the end of April 2021.

The Government has provided a comprehensive economic response that is one of the most generous globally, including very substantial steps to protect jobs. The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) has helped to pay the wages of people in 9.9 million jobs across the country, providing £46.4bn worth of support as of 13 December. The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) has received claims from 2.7 million self-employed workers, amounting to £13.7bn as of 13 December.

The Government will set out the next phase of the plan to tackle the virus and support jobs at Budget 2021.