Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the total cost to employers of retaining employees who are currently using the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme once the scheme ends.

As of 14 June 2021, there have been 11.6 million unique jobs supported by the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) since its inception. At the end of May, the number of jobs furloughed was as its lowest since the scheme began and has halved in the last 3 months, with 2.4 million jobs furloughed.

From July, employers are asked to contribute 10 per cent of wages for hours not worked up to £312.50 per month. This is the same approach the Government introduced successfully last summer, where comparable restrictions were in place. Ending the CJRS at the end of September 2021 strikes the right balance between supporting the economy as it opens up, continuing to provide support and protect incomes, and ensuring incentives are in place to get people back to work as demand returns.

The Government has been clear that it will not be possible to preserve every job or business, and it should not stand in the way of the economy adapting, people finding new jobs or starting new businesses. As part of the comprehensive Plan for Jobs, the Government announced the £2 billion Kickstart scheme which will create hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people, and the new three year Restart programme, which will provide support to over one million unemployed Universal Credit claimants across England and Wales and help them find work.

If needed, businesses can also benefit from support past the end of September through the Recovery Loan Scheme, which runs until the end of the year and Business Rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure until next April.