The Chancellor Rishi Sunak today set out a ‘Plan for Jobs’ that will spur the UK’s recovery from the Coronavirus outbreak.
- Chancellor launches Plan for Jobs – supporting, creating and protecting jobs across the country as we emerge from the coronavirus outbreak.
- More than 12,100 jobs have been supported in Calder Valley, which will now benefit from further measures as part of the Government’s plan to support businesses, create jobs and give young people the opportunity of a better start.
Local MP Craig Whittaker has welcomed the Plan for Jobs set out by Chancellor Rishi Sunak on Wednesday (8 July), saying it provides much-needed support to businesses across Calder Valley.
Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the Government has said it will do whatever it takes to protect people and businesses from the immediate economic crisis. As part of this, more than 12,000 jobs have been supported through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, allowing employers to put workers on furlough while the Government supports their wages, in Calder Valley.
The Chancellor has now set out the second phase of the Government’s response, focusing on jobs: supporting people to find the jobs that are out there, creating new jobs through investing in infrastructure, and protecting jobs by revitalising the hard-hit sectors upon which many jobs depend.
As part of this, employers will be encouraged to retain staff who have been on the furlough scheme, with the Government paying a one-off bonus of £1,000 for every employee who was furloughed and who is kept on until January.
Also included in the Government’s £30 billion Plan for Jobs:
- A temporary cut in VAT for the tourism and hospitality sectors, to give a much-needed boost to some of the industries hardest hit by coronavirus.
- A new Eat Out to Help Out Scheme, giving people up to 50 per cent off meals out at restaurants, pubs and cafes on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays in August.
- The temporary removal of stamp duty on all homes under £500,000 until the end of March 2021, to catalyse the housing market.
- A new Kickstart Scheme, which will create hundreds of thousands of new, fully-subsidised jobs for young people.
Following our Plan for Jobs, the Government will soon turn its attention to a third phase – a moment for rebuilding. The Chancellor will produce a Budget and a Spending Review in the autumn.
Commenting, Craig Whittaker MP said:
“Throughout the coronavirus crisis, the Conservative Government has stood squarely behind people and businesses with one of the largest and most comprehensive packages of support anywhere in the world.
As we turn our attention to carefully reopening our economy, it is right that the Chancellor is doing everything in his power to support, protect and create jobs. Our plan will be a lifeline for countless people and businesses across Calder Valley.
By levelling up the whole country, we will give businesses the confidence to retain and hire, create jobs in every region and ensure young people have the opportunity of a better start.”
The Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said:
Throughout this crisis I have never been the prisoner of ideology. For me, this has never just been a question of economics, but of values.
We believe in the nobility of work. We believe in the inspiring power of opportunity. We believe in the British people’s fortitude and endurance.
Our plan has a clear goal: to protect, support and create jobs. It will give businesses the confidence to retain and hire. To create jobs in every part of our country. To give young people a better start. To give people everywhere the opportunity of a fresh start.