More Islanders to be able to claim for lost income

More Islanders to be able to claim for lost income

So far more than £37.3 million has been paid out to almost 6,000 claimants under phase two of the government’s Co-Funded Payroll Scheme, which pays 80% of staff wages for struggling businesses and self-employed people.

The scheme was set up in response to the drastic falls in income many businesses have experienced during the lockdown.

Now an amendment has been made to allow claims for people who earn money from both employment and self-employment to claim up to £1,600 per month on lost ‘supplementary income’ from outside of their main job.

Under the original scheme, only people who paid class two social-security contributions on their self-employment income were able to claim for their business income.

This meant that many Islanders who had extra income from self-employment outside of their employed work were not able to claim for the loss of their additional earnings.

To qualify for support, an individual will need a business licence, evidence of their planned activity and to be operating in an eligible business sector.

Claims would be based on the person’s total trading income in that month, with individuals having until 30 June to claim for income lost in April and May, and being able to claim for June, July and August.

Treasury Minister Susie Pinel said: ‘We developed the Co-Funded Payroll Scheme to support Islanders’ incomes and ensure that Islanders didn’t face severe financial hardship due to Covid-19.

‘This amendment allows us to extend that support to more self-employed Islanders, and I’d like to express my sincere thanks to the officers who have developed this solution.’

Senator Ian Gorst, an assistant minister in the Treasury Department, said that small businesses run by self-employed Islanders ‘are vital to the Island’s economy’.

‘This amendment to the scheme allows the government to ensure that more of these businesses survive this crisis,’ he said.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister John Le Fondré said that ministers are ‘committed to supporting small businesses, start-ups and innovators’.

‘We recognise that many entrepreneurs may still rely on paid employment to support their fledgling businesses – this amendment will support them throughout this difficult time,’ he said.

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