Chancellor has a huge blind spot for the nearly 3m excluded self-employed and freelance workers

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has today announced an enhanced series of financial measures to help those affected by the COVID crisis.

Among the measures announced are a cut in the percentage an employer must pay to keep a worker furloughed, and an increase int he maximum someone who is self-employed can earn.

Many of the measures are designed to help businesses affected by the crisis but not shut by it. Millions of self-employed and freelance workers are still completely overlooked.

General Secretary of Prospect Mike Clancy commented:

“The holes in the Chancellor’s first attempt at a Winter Economy Plan were so big they could be seen from space, so it is welcome that he has listened to businesses and unions and fixed some of the most glaring flaws in his scheme.

“But the Chancellor still has a huge blind spot for the nearly three million self-employed and freelance workers who he has deliberately excluded from support, many of whom will be kicked off Universal Credit within weeks because of his failure to make the safety net work for self-employed workers.

“Before coming back with the fourth draft of his Winter Economy Plan the Chancellor needs to listen to workers, unions, and small businesses to fix these problems or risk leaving millions of workers with no support for nearly an entire year.”