Question to the HM Treasury:

What assessment he has made of the potential effect of the end of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme on the number of jobs that will be retained.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme was designed as a temporary measure. Closing the scheme at the end of September strikes the right balance between supporting the economy, protecting incomes, and getting people back to work.

This is working; at the start of this crisis, unemployment was expected to reach 12 per cent or more. It is now forecast to peak at about half of that level, meaning almost 2 million fewer people losing their jobs than previously feared.