RISHI Sunak has promised that "no one will be left without hope' as he announced his latest spending plans today.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer admitted that "harship lies ahead" for the country following the coronavirus, but said his plans would "protect, support and create jobs".
In his summer statement in the House of Commons, he told MPs that the economy had shrunk by 25% in just two months - the same amount it had grown over the past 18 years, adding: "We must and we will put our public finances back on a sustainable footing."
Mr Sunak ruled out extending the furlough scheme, and said: "We have to be honest. Leaving the scheme open forever gives people false hope that it will always be possible to return to the job they had before."
However he has announced that employers who bring staff back from furlough until at least January will be paid £1000 per employee.
He said: "We will pay this bonus for all furloughed employees. If employers bring back all 9 million employees, this would be a £9bn policy to retain people in work."
The Chancellor has also confirmed stamp duty will be scrapped for house purchases of up to £500,000. He said it would be a temporary measure until May 2021, adding: " House prices have fallen for the first time in 8 years, and uncertainty abounds in the market. We need people feeling confident to buy, sell, renovate, move and improve. That will drive growth [and] and create jobs."
VAT will also be reduced from 20% to 5% for hospitality and tourism industries - worth £4bn - until January 12.
To further help restaurants, Sunak will give everyone in the country an 'eat out to help out' discount for the month of August.
He explained: "Meals eaten at any participating business from Monday to Wednesday will be 50% off, up to a maximum discount of £10 per head for everyone, including children.
"Businesses will need to register and can do so through a simple website, open from next Monday.
"Each week in August they can then claim the money back with the funds in their bank account within five working days."
Labour shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds said Sunak's statement was not a 'back to work' budget, "with many of the big decisions put off until later."
She said: "The blunt truth is we have one of the highest death rates in the world, and among the deepest economic damage in the industrialised world from coronavirus.
"The very first thing the Chancellor must do is prevent additional economic damage due to the slow public health response of his Government.
"The failure to match soaring rhetoric with meaningful action has consequences for people across the country."
She criticised the Government's "failure to creature a fully functioning test track and isolate system" adding: "This has damaged public confidence and in turn harmed consumer demand.
"The Government’s contracts with outsourcing firms amount to almost £3 billion – but we still haven’t got test, track and isolate working properly in the UK...and Government still hasn’t got a grip on the low value and limited scope of sick pay, risking peoples’ ability to self-isolate."
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