He might look like that one lad in primary school who cried because he forgot his maths homework but Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak has pulled up his socks and announced a raft of new schemes to get the economy back up and running post COVID-19.
There’s bits in there about getting people back into jobs, green home grants and even a £1,000 bonus for every person who is brought back into the workplace off the furlough scheme.
There are a couple of biggies with regards to the hospitality and tourism sectors too, starting with a reduction in VAT from next Wednesday (until January) from 20% to just 5%. Hopefully we will see these savings passed on to the customer at some point.
Oh, and it’s also worth noting that the VAT slash won’t be on booze. Sorry about that.
Also announced was a scheme giving everyone in the country being given 50% off meals and (non-alcoholic) drinks for the whole of August, through an ‘Eat Out to Help Out‘ scheme. Hopefully this will encourage people to go out and spend some money without adversely affecting the takings of the businesses themselves.
Sunak said: “So for the month of August we will give you a 50% reduction, up to £10 per head, on sit-down meals and non-alcoholic drinks Monday-Wednesday.”
While the full details are yet to be confirmed, it’s believed the government will cover the other half of the bill, up to £10 per head, including children, in a bid to help boost the hospitality industry.
