02/11/2020

Furlough Scheme Extended

Finance Minister Conor Murphy has welcomed the extension of the Furlough Scheme and has called for Treasury to extend it beyond November.

The Furlough Scheme was due to end on 31 October and to be replaced with the Job Support Scheme (JSS) from 01 November.

As he announced a new four-week lockdown for England, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson also announced that the furlough scheme was being extended until December.

Responding to the announcement, Conor Murphy said: "For months I have pressed for the extension of the Furlough Scheme so that jobs can be protected. I therefore welcome this one month extension and the inclusion of employees on the payroll on or before 30 October as well as employees who haven't previously been furloughed as this has been a gap to date.

"Many businesses have been faced with tough decisions about redundancies which has not been helped by the lateness of this decision by Treasury. It remains unclear whether the Furlough Scheme will be extended beyond the end of November, and I will be pressing for this. The weeks and months ahead will continue to be very challenging – businesses and workers need certainty that the support offered by the Furlough Scheme will remain in place.

"The Executive is doing everything in its power to support the economy and Treasury must do the same by providing certainty at the earliest possible opportunity."

(MH)

Related Northern Ireland News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

14 November 2024
Minister Reacts To Teachers' Union Ballot Threat
Education Minister Paul Givan has responded to the announcement by several teachers' unions that they plan to ballot their members for industrial action over 2024/25 pay. Earlier this year, the Minister provided funding to successfully resolve the long-running industrial dispute over teachers' pay for 2021-24.
27 September 2021
Chancellor Urged To Extend Furlough Scheme
Northern Ireland's Finance Minister, Conor Murphy, has written to the Chancellor urging him to extend the furlough scheme beyond the end of September to help support businesses and workers.
05 November 2020
Furlough Scheme Extended Until March
The extension of the furlough scheme will apply to Northern Ireland. Speaking in the Commons Rishi Sunak said the scheme has been extended until the end of March. The scheme will pay up to 80% of employees wages up to £2,500 a month. Speaking in the Commons he said: "I also want to reassure the people of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
17 December 2021
Finance Minister Calls For Furlough Scheme To Be Reinstated
Finance Minister, Conor Murphy has written to the Treasury to call for additional funding and for the furlough scheme to be reinstated to deal with the increased challenges presented by Omicron. NI was recently allocated £75 million, however Minister Murphy has said that £50m of this is "not new money".
27 August 2021
Communities Minister Must Outline Actions To Protect Families
The Communities Minister has been urged to outline how individuals and families will be protected once a number of support provisions close at the end of September.