Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make the provisions of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme accessible to employees who have to go part-time as a result of reduced demand and social distancing measures.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme does not subsidise part-time work. It is designed to support individuals who would otherwise have been made redundant and it also protects public health by minimising the number of non-key workers outside of their homes on a regular basis. The Government has strengthened the welfare system to support those whose hours change, including an increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance and the working tax credit basic element.