Trade body welcomes furlough scheme one-month extension

The scheme, which allows businesses to furlough employees with the Government paying cash grants of 80% of their wages up to a maximum monthly pay of £2,500, was originally open for three months and backdated from 1 March until the end of May.

BBPA chief executive Emma McClarkin said: “As a sector employing 1m people, we greatly welcome the extension of the CRJS into the summer as announced today (17 April).

“The extension will ensure the continued safeguarding of thousands of livelihoods in the beer and pub trade, while also continuing to help closed pubs with their cash flow through this difficult period.”

Business survival

She added: “The extension has come just in the nick of time but is hugely important. Without it, companies in our industry would have been forced to start making difficult decisions on staff redundancies to ensure the very survival of their businesses.

“The Government has done absolutely the right thing by extending the scheme. It will help pubs struggling through the crisis, who are key employers in regions and communities across the whole of the UK. Rest assured, the action taken by the Government today has prevented job losses.”

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said he would keep the scheme under review and extend it if necessary.

Supporting recovery

He added: “We have taken unprecedented action to support jobs and businesses through this period of uncertainty, including the UK-wide CJRS.

“With the extension of the coronavirus lockdown measures made yesterday (16 April), it is the right decision to extend the furlough scheme for a month, to the end of June, to provide clarity.

“It is vital for people’s livelihoods the UK economy gets up and running again when it is safe to do so and I will continue to review the scheme so it is supporting our recovery.”