Greater Manchester granted £13m funding to help newly unemployed people
The DWP have allocated the funds towards an innovative programme titled WHP JETS - which has been approved by GM leaders and offers early support to those who have recently become unemployed.
Greater Manchester has received a boost in its battle to turn the tide on unemployment in the region – with a new scheme receiving £13m from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
The announcement arrives just as the Office for National Statistics reveals that more than 695,000 UK workers have been removed from payrolls since March (when the coronavirus lockdown began).
The DWP have allocated the funds towards an innovative programme titled WHP JETS – which has been approved by GM leaders and offers early support to those who have recently become unemployed.
According to the GMCA, the programme is set to help approximately 13,200 people in the city-region find long-term employment.
Launching in October, it will be available for jobseekers who have been unemployed and in receipt of benefits for at least 13 weeks.
Councillor Sean Fielding, Portfolio Lead for Digital, Education, Skills, Work and Apprenticeships said: “It’s great that the Government has recognised the achievements of our already successful Working Well programme and now with this funding the scheme can expand to help recently unemployed people in the city-region.
“The coronavirus pandemic has had a detrimental impact on our local economy and it is vital those effected are given support to find employment again as soon as possible.
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“The programme is expected to help people secure employment after taking part in the scheme for six months, which will also aid the city-regions recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Running until March 2022, the JETS Scheme will provide support with CV writing, job searches and interviewing.
Participants will also be given advice and guidance around confidence building and self-efficacy ‘through a sector-based approach.’
JETS will operate as part of Working Well – a family of local services which have been commissioned to support those in the area struggling to find or hold down employment.
According to the GMCA, Working Well programmes have achieved employment outcomes for over 6,500 residents since its launch in 2014.
How will the Government’s new digital ID alternative for alcohol sales work?
Emily Sergeant
All licensed venues across England and Wales now have the choice to introduce digital proof of age for alcohol sales alongside physical.
Instead of having to hand over physical ID that contains personal information, such as names and home addresses, customers now have the choice to simply provide confirmation that they are 18 or over on their phone – helping to better protect privacy and personal safety in the process.
This means that, no matter whether you’re buying a drink at your favourite pub, heading to a festival, or enjoying a night out at a concert, you won’t need to worry if you’ve left your ID at home.
According to the Government, this new change will benefit businesses greatly too, as certified digital services are able to check that an ID is genuine and belongs to the person presenting it much easier than the alternative can, which therefore helps to reduce the risk of any fake or borrowed IDs going undetected.
Well, according to the Government, it could be as simple as a customer showing a QR code for staff to scan, or tapping their phone against a compatible reader, where staff will then receive a clear confirmation on their device that the customer has passed the age check.
This change follows a 2024 Government consultation where it was reported that 72% of respondents supported the use of digital identities for age verification when buying alcohol.
Digital Government Minister Stephanie Peacock reiterated that ‘it will remain an individual or business’ choice whether to use or adopt [digital ID]’ and that physical ID will ‘still remain a valid way’ for customers to prove their age.
“This groundbreaking change in the law will mean you do not need to carry a physical ID, nor hand over sensitive personal information such as your name or address just to prove your age, allowing everyone to feel safer on a night out,” she concluded.
Featured Image – Robin Worrall (via Unsplash)
News
Manchester to host G20 Summit in 2027 with more than a dozen world leaders descending on the city
Emily Sergeant
Manchester has been confirmed as the host city for the G20 Summit next year.
It was already announced back in November last year that the G20 Summit would be coming to the UK in 2027, and plans were apparently already being discussed to host it in Manchester even before Andy Burnham became Prime Minister and Number 10 North was set up.
But now, ahead of this year’s leaders’ summit being held in Miami in December, it has been confirmed that the G20 Summit will arrive in Manchester in November 2027.
Manchester is said to have been picked to host the leaders’ summit because of its ‘cultural heritage’.
Bringing together 19 of the world’s largest economies and two major multilateral bodies – the European Union and the African union – G20 members who will be invited to attend the summit next year make up 85% of global GDP, 75% of international trade, and two-thirds of the world’s population as a whole.
Manchester has been confirmed to host the G20 Summit in 2027 / Credit: 10 Downing Street | Paul Kagame (Flickr)
G20 members are also some of the UK’s closest economic partners, the Government insists.
17 of the UK’s top 20 global export markets attend the summit, as do 18 of the UK’s top 20 sources of foreign direct investment.
The presidency of the G20 is currently held by the US but will pass to the UK after the leaders’ summit hosted by the president at his Trump National Doral Miami golf resort in December.
The 2027 summit will be held at Manchester Central, it has been confirmed, and other locations across the UK will also host other G20 events as part of the year-long presidency, but these are yet to be announced.
The Manc -
15th September 2020 
