We are now in the eleventh week of lockdown and I hope you
are all well.
I have returned to Parliament this week and am already down
to speak in the Chamber of the House of Commons today, representing Truro and
Falmouth in asking about support for our tourism and hospitality sector as we look
to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
My thanks goes to all primary schools and early years settings
that have increased the numbers of children allowed back to school this week - my own daughter has returned to school, and
it is vital that where we are able to, we ensure that our children are able to
access education in an appropriate environment.
Last week Parliament did not sit in any form because it was
the Whitsun Recess. I did take the opportunity to virtually meet with a number
of local organisations.
I met with local Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) to
talk about the funding recently announced for them to spend on projects to provide
vital coordination and help, both for businesses getting back on their feet and
for communities that will need guidance and reassurance to return to the high
street. There are three excellent BIDs in the Truro and Falmouth constituency,
Truro, Falmouth and Newham and I look forward to seeing what they will be doing
with their allocated monies.
I also met with Rev Jeremy Putnam of All Saints Highertown
and Baldhu to discuss his church’s commendable work in the community both
before and during the pandemic, as well as plans for the future. While our churches
are all currently closed, it is good to see they are spiritually still very
much a part of our communities during lockdown, providing pastoral care and
support for parishioners as well as often being key parts of the volunteer
groups that have played such a crucial part in assisting` vulnerable people at
this difficult time.
On Friday I was pleased to see the Chancellor announce that
those eligible under the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), which
has so far seen 2.3 million claims worth £6.8 billion will be able to claim a
second and final grant in August.
The Chancellor also set out more details on how the
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) will continue to support jobs and
business as people return to work, following the announcement of an extension
of the scheme on 12 May.
So far, the CJRS has helped 1 million employers across the
UK furlough 8.4 million jobs, protecting people’s livelihoods.
From 1 July 2020, businesses will be given the flexibility
to bring furloughed employees back part time. This is a month earlier than
previously announced to help support people back to work. From August 2020, the level of government
grant provided through the job retention scheme will be slowly tapered to
reflect that people will be returning to work. That means that for June and
July the government will continue to pay 80% of people’s salaries. In the
following months, businesses will be asked to contribute a modest share, but
crucially individuals will continue to receive that 80% of salary covering the
time they are unable to work.
My team and I are here to help during this crisis. You can
email me at Cherilyn.mackrory.mp@parliament.uk, call me on 0207 2193713
(messages will be picked up), and my website www.cherilynmackrory.org.uk and
Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/thisischerilyn are all regularly updated
with matters relating both to the current crisis and other useful news and
information. Please do get in touch if you need any help or have questions for
me.
No comments:
Post a Comment