Last week’s official employment and GDP statistics confirmed the impact of coronavirus on our economy, which is matching the global picture. This shows why it’s vital to protect and create jobs. As we move in to the second stage of our recovery from coronavirus, it is right that the focus is on how we can secure our economic recovery.
Our Conservative government has a Plan for Jobs to protect, create and support employment, so that people, particularly young people, can access the opportunities they need to shape their careers; and are accelerating billions of pounds of investment in shovel-ready projects and green infrastructure to create jobs, drive growth and stimulate the economy. While there are difficult choices to be made ahead, our country will get through this together.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak is keen to ensure that nobody will be left without hope or opportunity. Our economic recovery is being secured by: Putting jobs at the forefront of our economic recovery, supporting people to find jobs, creating new jobs, and protecting jobs by revitalising the hard-hit sectors upon which many jobs depend. The government’s jobs plan is worth up to £30 billion and will spur our economic recovery.
The hardest-hit sectors are being supported, including the Eat Out to Help Out scheme to protect the jobs of the hospitality industry’s 1.8 million employees, and a temporary cut in VAT from 20% to 5% for the tourism and hospitality sectors.
Support is being expanded for those who are seeking jobs, including by doubling the number of Work Coaches, and more advisers are being recruited for the National Careers Service, so that more people across the country can access the advice they need. Young people are being supported into the workplace, through measures such as the Kickstart Scheme, which will create hundreds of thousands of high-quality jobs for young people at the highest risk of long-term unemployment.
The next few months will be hard. Sadly, we know that things will get worse before they get better for jobs, which is why it’s important for us all to unite and put jobs first.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
19th August 2020
