Sunak faces ‘ viable job’ criticism

Chancellor Rishi Sunak should not be able to decide what is a “viable job”, Scotland’s finance secretary has said.

The Job Support Scheme announced by Mr Sunak on Thursday is intended to replace furlough when that form of support ends next month, but only jobs that are deemed viable will be eligible for the new payment.

Kate Forbes has expressed concern at the new measures, which she said should have also included an extension to the furlough scheme.

Ms Forbes said: “I don’t believe it’s the Chancellor’s job to decide what is and isn’t a viable job, because this scheme requires people to be in some form of work.”

She said localised lockdowns are not taken into account in the scheme, and neither are parts of the economy such as nightclubs, which have not yet been allowed to open at all. Ms Forbes said: “Where we’ve seen localised lockdowns during furlough, businesses have been able to re- furlough their staff and get access to critical support. This scheme won’t allow for that. The other thing it won’t allow for is sectors that haven’t been allowed to reopen, either because they have to remain shut or because business hasn’t increased. These are viable jobs, they’re good jobs - but because of the nature of lockdown right now, people have not been allowed to reopen. The Chancellor’s scheme is, wrongly in my view, trying to determine what is and isn’t a viable job in a way that does not appreciate the reality of the situation we are living in.”

Under the new scheme, employers will continue to pay staff wages for the hours they work. But if they are not required to work their full hours, the Government and the employer will each pay one third of their equivalent salary. Ms Forbes said she also hoped clarity would have been given earlier.