Furlough scheme extended until October 2020
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will continue to apply across all regions and sectors in the UK economy until the end of October. Furloughed workers across the UK will continue to receive 80% of their current salary, up to £2,500.
The scheme will continue in its current form until the end of July. Changes to allow more flexibility will come in from the start of August. More specific details and information around implementation will be made available by the end of this month.
From the start of August, furloughed workers will be able to return to work part-time with employers being asked to pay a percentage towards the salaries of their furloughed staff. The employer payments will substitute the contribution the government is currently making, ensuring that staff continue to receive 80% of their salary, up to £2,500 a month.
Take a look at BCC’s response following the Chancellor’s announcement that the Job Retention Scheme will be extended until October. Share our Twitter and LinkedIn posts with your members.
Updated FAQs on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS)
The BCC policy team, alongside our colleagues at Quest have updated the CJRS FAQs in line with the latest UK government guidance. The updated version is now available on our Coronavirus Hub. Contact the BCC policy team with any queries.
Launch of government guarantee to support provision of Trade Credit Insurance
Take a look at our response following the announcement of a government guarantee for Trade Credit Insurance (TCI). This is an important win for the Chamber Network following a letter which we recently sent to Economic Secretary to the Treasury, John Glen MP on this issue.
| • | The guarantee will be delivered through a temporary reinsurance agreement with insurers currently operating in the market. |
| • | The guarantee will cover trading by domestic firms and exporting firms and the intent is for agreements to be in place with insurers by end of this month. |
| • | The guarantee will be temporary and targeted to cover Coronavirus economic challenges, and will provisionally last until the end of the year. It will be followed by a review of the TCI market to ensure it can continue to support businesses in future. Further details will be announced in due course. |
| • | The UK government will work with businesses and the industry on the full details of the scheme to ensure firms are supported and risk is appropriately shared between the government and insurers. |
Please see the full details of the scheme and share our posts on Twitter and LinkedIn with your members.
BCC responds to ONS Q1 2020 GDP stats
Take a look at the response from BCC’s Head of Economics Suren Thiru to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) GDP statistics for Q1 2020, released this morning. Share with your members on Twitter and LinkedIn.