Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that residents without recourse to public funds will have financial protection during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The government has introduced a range of measures to provide financial protection for those affected by Covid-19, including those with no recourse to public funds (NRPF).

Employers will be able to apply for grants under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for workers on the PAYE system. The government has also extended Statutory Sick Pay to be payable from Day 1 rather than Day 4 and made Contributory Employment and Support Allowance available from the first day of sickness rather than the eighth, subject to other eligibility criteria. For those who file Self-Assessment returns, the government has deferred Income Tax Self-Assessment payments from July 2020 to January 2021.

In addition, the government has announced that banks and building societies will offer a three-month ‘mortgage holiday’ for borrowers in financial difficulty, including landlords with tenants in financial difficulty, as a result of Covid-19. Alongside this, the government has legislated to prohibit tenant evictions for three months.