Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a furlough scheme for for companies that remain unable to operate due to covid-19 restrictions.

After eight months of the CJRS, the scheme will close in October. The CJRS must be temporary and the Government must ensure people can get back to work when it is safe to do so and get the UK economy up and running again.

It would be challenging to target a furlough scheme to specific sectors in a fair and deliverable way, and without creating distortion, particularly as some firms work across multiple sectors. Moreover, it may not be the case that this would be the most effective or sensible way to provide longer term support for those sectors most affected by coronavirus.

There are other schemes that can provide support to firms, such as the new Job Support Scheme and other measures announced in the Winter Economy Plan. The Job Support Scheme is designed to protect viable jobs in businesses who are facing lower demand over the winter months due to COVID-19, to help keep their employees attached to the workforce. The company will continue to pay its employee for time worked, but the cost of hours not worked will be split between the employer, the Government (through wage support) and the employee (through a wage reduction), and the employee will keep their job.