The UK Government furlough scheme is continuing to support thousands of jobs in Banff and Buchan – with a further £4.1million paid out in grants for the self-employed.
New figures released by HMRC have shown an increase in the number of workers furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme from 2,500 in November to 3,600 in December. That accounts for 8% of the eligible workforce in the constituency.
A total of 1,400 claims amounting to £4.1million have now been made under the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) in Banff and Buchan, a take-up rate of 37%.
All of mainland Scotland was placed into level four Coronavirus restrictions on Boxing Day.
Scottish Conservative MP for Banff and Buchan David Duguid said:
“These figures show once again the huge value of UK Government support during this pandemic.
“Thousands of jobs are being supported by the furlough scheme, with a sharp increase in take-up since the resumption of the ‘stay at home’ message from Boxing Day onwards.
“By paying 80% of the wages of workers across Banff and Buchan, the UK Government is helping to avoid the worst impact of this crisis.
“Since the beginning of the pandemic in March last year, billions have been provided by the UK Government to protect our economy and invest in our health service. I dread to think what would have happened has that support not been in place.
“We all want to get back to something approaching normality as soon as we can.
“The key to doing that is through the vaccination programme, and it is vital that jabs are administered to as many people across Banff and Buchan as quickly as possible.”
