The House of Commons Treasury Committee (Treasury Committee) has published its interim report, ‘Economic impact of coronavirus: Gaps in support’, as part of its inquiry into the economic impact of Coronavirus. The report makes recommendations to the Government to help over one million people identified by the Treasury Committee as having fallen through critical gaps in Government COVID-19 support due to the pace at which this support has been rolled out and its huge scale.
The report also appeals to the Government to implement these recommendations to fulfil one of the key overarching principles reflected in its COVID-19 Recovery Strategy of fairness to all people and all groups and its promise to do whatever it takes to protect people and business from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
A number of COVID-19 support measures have been introduced by the Government, including two principal schemes:
- Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS): aimed at salaried individuals and designed to pay them 80% of their salaries, up to a cap of £2,500 per month.
- Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS): aimed at self-employed individuals and designed to pay them 80% of their average monthly trading profits over the last three years, subject to an annual trading profits threshold of £50,000.
While the COVID-19 support measures have been welcomed by many, the Treasury Committee has identified in their report five main groups of people who have not been able to benefit from them. The Committee is generally concerned that these people have lost their livelihoods and continue to endure financial hardship with no access to COVID-19 support even as the period of such support is extended for those who are currently eligible.
The five main groups of people, together with the specific Treasury Committee concerns and recommendations to the Government are summarised below.
Economic impact of Coronavirus: Gaps in support
Main groups affected | Treasury Committee concerns | Recommendations to the Government |
New starters in employment |
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Self-employed with annual trading profits above £50,000 threshold |
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Limited company directors receiving a large part of their income as dividends |
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Freelancers and short-term contractors |
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Newly self-employed |
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External link
Economic impact of coronavirus: Gaps in support, House of Commons Treasury Committee