Chancellor Rishi Sunak has unveiled a number of measures in a bid to restart the UK's battered economy, and keep unemployment from spiralling.
The key plans in the Chancellor's Summer Statement include:
Jobs Retention Bonus
UK Employers will receive a one-off bonus of £1,000 for each furloughed employee who is still employed as of 31 January 2021.
A "kickstart scheme" for young people
The £2 billion Kickstart Scheme aims to create “hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs” for those aged 16-24, who are claiming Universal Credit. The funding available for each six-month job placement will cover 100% of the National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week – and employers will be able to top this wage up.
More training and support
£1.6 billion will be invested in scaling up employment support schemes, training and apprenticeships to help people looking for a job. This includes a scheme to give businesses £2,000 for each new apprentice they hire under the age of 25. There’s also a plan to triple the scale of traineeships, and the number of sector-based work academy placements in 2020-21. The Chancellor also announced plans double the number of work coaches to 27,000.
VAT cut for hospitality
The Chancellor announced a temporary VAT cut for hospitality and tourism - down from 20% to 5% - which will run from next week until January 12.
Sunak said he hoped it would give businesses “the confidence to maintain their staff, as more people get through the door and business activity kick-starts again.”
Eat Out to Help Out
The government’s new discount restaurant scheme will provide a 50% reduction for sit-down meals in cafes, restaurants and pubs across the UK from Monday to Wednesday every week throughout August 2020.
Stamp duty cut in England and Northern Ireland
There’s to be a temporary increase to the Nil Rate Band of Residential SDLT (Stamp Duty) from £125,000 to £500,000 until 31 March 2021.
This should mean In England and Northern Ireland nearly 9 out of 10 people getting on or moving up the property ladder will pay no Stamp Duty at all.
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