Ruth Edwards has praised the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) for helping thousands of Rushcliffe households through the pandemic.
Around 12,000 workers had been placed on furlough in Rushcliffe up to the 30th June, as part of nine and a half million jobs preserved across the country.
The government is still footing the bill for up to 80% of employees’ wages (up to £2,500) for the hours staff are furloughed, but businesses have restarted paying National Insurance and pension contributions in August.
The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme also received claims to the value of £9.1 million from 3,000 Rushcliffe residents during the same period, with 2.2 million self-employed supported to the tune of £6.4 billion nationally.
In addition to this support nearly £40.5million of Bounce Back Loans have been given to small companies, providing loans of up to £50,000 per applicant. Over £14.5million worth of grants has been handed out to businesses across Rushcliffe, which do not need to be paid back.
Commenting on the local impact of Government’s measures, Ruth Edwards said:
“As the scale of the Covid-19 crisis became clear, the government acted quickly and effectively to help millions of workers follow social distancing measures without suffering a big loss of income. This gave thousands of furloughed Rushcliffe residents a vital lifeline as we weathered the storm and means many local businesses are now well placed for a gradual return to the office.
“As we now work to restart our economy, I have no doubt that the Government will continue to support people in our local community. Schemes such as the hugely popular Eat Out to Help Out are already proving a huge success at getting customers back into local businesses.”