The chancellor announced further changes on 8th July 2020 to various schemes and additional incentives for businesses and individuals. Please see below a summary of the announcements:
Furloughed Staff
Chancellor announces new job retention bonus for employers who bring back furloughed staff. The government will pay employers a £1,000 bonus per employee for retaining the staff for three months after the furlough scheme ends in October. For businesses to receive the bonus, the employees must be paid an average of £520 per month between November and January 2021.
Kickstart Job Scheme
The government has pledged a £2bn fund to help create more jobs for young people. They will cover the cost of 25 hours’ work a week at the National Minimum Wage as below:
| Under 18s | £4.55 |
| 18 to 20 | £6.45 |
| 21 to 24 | £8.20 |
Employers can decide to top-up if they want to. The scheme will open in August through to December 2021.
£1,000 grant per trainee for employers who take on new trainees aged 16-24 in England.
£2,000 grant for employers per apprentice under 25 hired, £1,500 for those over 25, for six months starting 1 August (in England)
Eating Out and Going Out
The VAT included in the cost of food, accommodation and attractions will be cut from 20% to 5% for the next six months.
The government also announced that people will get a 50% discount on their restaurant bill. There will be discounts of up to £10 per head for anyone eating out at participating restaurants from Mondays to Wednesdays in the month of August.
Stamp-Duty
Until now, purchases of land or property in England and Northern Ireland above £125,000 incurred stamp-duty land tax. This has to be paid to HMRC within 14 days of the purchases.
Changes announced today include an increase in the threshold to £500,000 with immediate effect until 31st March 2021. This means that buyers in England and Northern Ireland will not pay any stamp-duty land tax if the purchase price of their property or land is up to £500,000. There are different rates and systems in Scotland and Wales.
Those buying homes for more than £500,000, or second homes, will still have to pay stamp duty, but their total bill will be lower as a result of these changes.
Home Improvements
There will be help with the cost of insulating your home, including double glazing, in England.
In the scheme, which will start in September, the government will pay at least two-thirds of the cost of home improvements that save energy. This will be paid as a voucher when the work is approved.
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