Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

That this House notes that as at 21 June 2020, 1.1 Million employers and 9.2 Million Jobs were being supported through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme at a cost of £22.9 Billion; notes with grave concern the effect on whole swathes of the economy of the scheduled cessation of the scheme on 31st October; notes the immoral situation of employers using the Job Retention Scheme to consult on making jobs redundant, in many cases permanently and in others to rehire staff on inferior wages, terms and conditions; further notes that the Government does not measure how many firms are engaged in such behaviour; urges the Government to remove an arbitrary cut-off date for the Job Retention Scheme and to provide significant support to critically affected sectors to avoid widespread job losses, to immediately assess the effect of firms misusing the scheme to cover costs during redundancy consultation periods, to commit to providing regular updates on those matters, to bring forward legislative proposals to close loopholes which enable unscrupulous employers to benefit from the Job Retention Scheme whilst reducing jobs and attacking employees’ wages, terms and conditions.