Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will extend the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for those employees with blood cancer whose work makes it difficult for reasonable covid-19 adjustments to be implemented.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) is available to all employers and employees providing they meet the eligibility criteria. This includes Clinically Extremely Vulnerable (CEV) individuals; such as those with cancers of the blood.

Shielding advice was paused on 1 April, and the Government is now advising clinically extremely vulnerable people generally to follow the same guidance as everyone else, taking appropriate precautions to keep themselves safe. The Health and Safety Executive has also published resources to support employers and CEV employees, which can be found on its website.

CEV individuals should also talk to their employer to discuss and agree options in relation to work, for example the ability to work from home, or returning to the workplace in a different role if their previous position cannot be fulfilled in a Covid-secure manner.

Closing the CJRS at the end of September is designed to strike a balance between supporting the economy as it opens up, continuing to provide support and protect incomes, and ensuring incentives are in place to get people back to work as demand returns.