Sunak warned of ‘tidal wave’ of job losses as furlough scheme ends
The government’s coronavirus furlough scheme ends today after supporting millions of workers during the pandemic.
Ministers say the wages of more than 11 million jobs were subsidised for at least some of the scheme’s duration, at a cost of about £70bn.
There is now uncertainty over the almost one million people still thought to be on the scheme at the end of September, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates.
Meanwhile, job vacancies in the UK have hit a record of more than a million, according to recent ONS data, with openings in the hospitality and transport sectors up more than 75% in three months.
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Simon Clarke told Sky News: “There is a lot of opportunity out there for people now. There’s never an easy moment to end these measures.
“They’ve been hugely important but it is also time to recognise that we are now, thankfully, out of the teeth of this pandemic… and we’re in a situation where normal opportunity is back out there for people to embrace.”
But economists say there is likely to be a rise in unemployment due to new redundancies, despite the fact some may be able to find work in recovering sectors such as travel and hospitality.
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‘More redundancies’ at travel firms as furlough ends – ABTA boss
Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said he still had “doubts” about whether the economy had recovered enough to re-employ all those coming off furlough.
The winding up of the scheme could hit some especially hard as it comes at the same time as the £20 Universal Credit uplift ends, and amid a background of rising energy bills.
The Liberal Democrats have warned of a “tidal wave” of job losses and want furlough to continue for some sectors.
In a letter to the chancellor, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Christine Jardine said furlough should be maintained for another six months for 10 industries particularly badly affected by the pandemic, such as air travel.
“The withdrawal of furlough risks having a devastating impact on countless families already facing a winter of soaring energy bills,” said Ms Jardine.
“The government needs to rethink its approach or the country could face a Coronavirus Black Thursday.”
The party says the extension would cost about £600m.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “I am immensely proud of the furlough scheme, and even more proud of UK workers and businesses whose resolve has seen us through an immensely difficult time.
“With the recovery well underway, and more than one million job vacancies, now is the right time for the scheme to draw to a close.
“But that in no way means the end of our support. Our Plan for Jobs is helping people into work and making sure they have the skills needed for the jobs of the future.”
Following the end of the furlough scheme, the government has launched a £500m support package for vulnerable households over winter.
The new Household Support Fund will help people with essentials over the coming months and will be distributed by councils in England.
It will be available as small grants to meet daily needs such as food, clothing, and utilities and will be available to councils from October.
The devolved administrations will receive up to £79m of the £500m.
A top Downing Street aide has resigned after sending sexually explicit messages about independent MP Diane Abbott, Sky News understands.
Paul Ovenden, who was the director of strategy at Number 10, is understood to have left the role on Monday after a number of instant messages from 2017 became public.
Sky News understands he did so to avoid becoming a “distraction” for Sir Keir Starmer, just days after he was forced to sack the UK’s ambassador to the US – Peter Mandelson – over his ties to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The messages, exchanged between Mr Ovenden and a female colleague, contained the graphic retelling of a conversation he reportedly overheard about Ms Abbott while at a party.
The former aide has alleged these were not his original words, but said he “deeply regrets” sharing them.
He said: “I really, deeply regret my sharing this story, and the hurt and embarrassment its publication will cause.
“Accordingly, I have brought forward my resignation to today as I do not want to be a distraction from the government’s work.”
Diane Abbott
It is understood Mr Ovenden announced to colleagues before the summer recess he was leaving his role, and had planned to leave “quietly and quickly” sometime this month.
However, in the wake of the publication of these messages, Mr Ovenden “brought forward” his resignation to today.
The messages, exchanged with a female colleague and seen by Sky News, described a game of “shag, marry, kill” the aide overheard while at a party in May 2017.
This involved explicit descriptions about suspended Labour MP Ms Abbott.
A Number 10 spokesperson said: “These messages are appalling and unacceptable.
“As the first black woman to be elected to parliament, Diane Abbott is a trailblazer who has faced horrendous abuse throughout her political career.
“These kinds of comments have no place in our politics.”
Sky News has contacted Ms Abbott for comment.
The latest Number 10 resignation comes as Sir Keir admitted he never would have appointed Lord Mandelson to the post of UK ambassador to the US if he had known what he knows now about the extent of his association with Epstein.
Speaking publicly for the first time since he sacked Mandelson last Thursday, the prime minister explained that a “due diligence process” was conducted before he was appointed to the post in February.
“I knew of his association with Epstein,” Sir Keir said.
“But had I known then what I know now, I’d have never appointed him.”
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‘Had I known then, what I know now, I’d have never appointed him’ Starmer said.
Just days before Lord Mandelson was sacked, Angela Rayner resigned as deputy prime minister and housing secretary after admitting she did not pay enough tax on her second home.
She also quit as deputy leader of the Labour Party, an elected post.
Sir Keir’s second-in-command admitted to Sky News political editor Beth Rigby on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast that she should have paid the higher rate of stamp duty on a home she bought in Hove, East Sussex, as it was her second property.
UK crypto and payments groups urged the Bank of England to drop plans to cap individual stablecoin holdings, claiming the move would be costly and hard to enforce.
Atkins signaled a departure from the enforcement-first approach of the SEC during Gensler’s leadership, including preliminary notices prior to enforcement actions.
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