Rishi Sunakhas announced the government’s new plan to protect jobs as the UK suffers a second surge in COVID-19 cases.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Thursday (24 September), The Chancellor informed his fellow MPs about a winter economy plan – designed to keep the country afloat whilst preventing mass unemployment.
The new package, created to help Britain through a “permanent adjustment”, will replace furlough and top up wages for employees.
According to Sunak, the Job Support Scheme will directly support the wages of people in work, giving businesses the option of keeping employees in a job on shorter hours rather than making them redundant.
Rules state that employees must work at least a third of their usual hours and be paid for that work by their employer.
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The government will increase those people’s wages covering two-thirds of pay they’ve lost by reducing their working hours. The employee will keep their job.
All small and medium-sized businesses are eligible, and the scheme will run for six months, starting in November.
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Treasury
Sunak stated: “I know people are anxious and afraid and exhausted… I share those feelings but there are reasons to be cautiously optimistic.
“We now know more about this virus. We have seen three consecutive months of growth [in the economy], and millions of people have moved off the furlough and back to work.
“Our task now is to move to the next stage of the economic plan; nurturing recovery and protecting jobs through the difficult winter months.”
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The UK found itself riding the crest of a second wave of cases just as the government’s furlough scheme was set to end on October 31.
Sunak’s first job protection package – launched during the onset of the pandemic – had allowed businesses to claim back 80% of their employees’ wages during a period when the country plunged into a recession.
Millions of workers in the UK are still currently supported via furlough, and there had been great concern about the scheme’s impending conclusion.
Originally created to cover wages until the summer, the programme was extended by a further four months in May as the pandemic continued to wreak havoc on businesses.
Sunak had previously expressed reluctance to keep the programme running beyond autumn, but confirmed earlier this week that the government had plans to “continue protecting jobs“.
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As our response to coronavirus adapts, tomorrow afternoon I will update the House of Commons on our plans to continue protecting jobs through the winter. pic.twitter.com/eP6aqcocxd
This week also saw the confirmed scrapping of the Autumn Budget – where the Chancellor ordinarily reveals the condition of, and plans for, the national economy.
Major spending decisions are now being placed on hold until 2021.
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Huge bakery chain Gail’s confirms move to Prestwich – but spells village’s name wrong in signs
Daisy Jackson
After months of swirling rumours, bakery group Gail’s has finally confirmed it’s moving to Prestwich – but locals have spotted a glaring error at the first hurdle.
The popular artisan bakery will be moving onto Bury New Road, right in the heart of the suburb and directly opposite the new Rudy’s pizzeria.
Prestwich locals have been hearing whispers of a Gail’s arriving for a few months, and finally the London-founded cafe has stuck up signs to confirm it’s on the way.
But the sign contains one crucial mistake – it’s spelled Prestwich wrong.
The red window displays now read ‘Hello Preswich. We’ll be baking here soon’.
One local messaged Gail’s to point out the error and to say it’s ‘not a great first impression for the locals…’.
Gail’s has since confirmed it’s in the process of fixing the signs.
The arrival of both Gail’s and Rudy’s has already caused a stir in Prestwich, which has always been fiercely independent and has only a handful of chains within it (Greggs and Costa are perched by the tram stop).
In fact, one local business-owner shared a moving statement about his concerns for the future of local businesses just a few weeks ago.
Gail’s has confirmed it’s opening a bakery in Prestwich. Credit: The Manc Group
First formed in the early 1990s as a wholesale-only operation, Gail’s opened its first cafe on Hampstead High Street in 2005.
Today the brand has more than 100 sites spread across London, Oxford, Brighton and further afield, and is known more as a customer-facing cafe and bakery.
It’s famed for its freshly-baked loaves, cinnamon buns, ham and cheese croissants and coffees, and is likely to go down a storm in Prestwich.
But the signs have been causing a bit of a stir in the wrong way this weekend – in a local Facebook group, one person commented: “Not locals who own it then.”
Another described it as an ‘epic fail’.
And one person said: “Oh the DRAMA of it all.”
Someone else joked: “I cannot wait for Gais to come to Preswich.”
Met Office issues snow warnings for large parts of northern England from this evening
Emily Sergeant
Greater Manchester could be waking up to a winter wonderland as weather warnings for snow and ice have been issued across northern England.
Expected to arrive anywhere from 6pm this evening (18 November) and last until around 10am tomorrow morning (19 November), the Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice for large parts of northern England – indicating that “snow may bring disruption to a central swathe of the UK during Monday night and Tuesday morning”.
Weather forecasters say that although most snow is likely to accumulate on higher ground, with five-10 cm on ground over 200 metres, and possibly 15-20 cm over 300 metres, there is a chance that snow may settle at lower levels “within the warning area”.
The Met Office also said that this possible five-10 cm at lower levels is likely to be “more disruptive”, particularly if travelling and if the snow coincides with rush hour, but the likelihood for that is still “uncertain” at this stage.
Greater Manchester could see snow from this evening as the Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning / Credit: Geograph | Pexels
As the rain, sleet, and snow begin to clear on tomorrow morning, ice may form on surfaces that are untreated.
“We have issued yellow warnings for snow and ice as cold weather moves in from the north,” explained Andy Page, who is a Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office.
“This brings snow showers and some ice to parts of Scotland on Sunday night, and then the potential for a spell of snow to lead to disruption to some transport routes across a central swathe of the UK on Tuesday morning.”
⚠️ Yellow weather warning UPDATED ⚠️
Snow & ice across southern parts of Scotland, northern England, the Midlands and north Wales
In addition to the severe weather warnings, a Cold Health Alert has also been issued by the UKHSA, and it covers the north of England and the Midlands right through until Thursday.
The Manc -
24th September 2020 
