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| Coronavirus UK: £330bn of business loans made available as PM says school closures 'under continuous review' – politics live | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Chancellor Rishi Sunak says he will do whatever it takes to protect jobs and incomes as Boris Johnson says ‘we must act like wartime government’. The day’s political developments as they happen | Chancellor Rishi Sunak says he will do whatever it takes to protect jobs and incomes as Boris Johnson says ‘we must act like wartime government’. The day’s political developments as they happen |
| Johnson is winding up now. | |
| He says the more thoroughly people can follow the advice they have been given, the more they will be able to save lives and protect the NHS, and the more quickly they will get through this. | |
| And that’s it. The press conference is over. | |
| I will be posting a summary and reaction shortly. | |
| Q: Will you level with people about how bad this will be for the economy? Is a recession inevitable? | |
| Sunak says this will have a significant impact on the economy. | |
| But it will be temporary, he says. | |
| Q: If you close schools, what will you do to help people reliant on free school meals? | |
| Johnson says, as the government comes to this decision, it will have a plan to address this. They want to ensure parents and children get the help they need. | |
| (It sounds from this very much as if it is more a matter of when, not if, schools are closed.) | |
| Q: People are confused what the rules are about staying at home. Can you explain? | |
| Johnson says people are being told to avoid all unnecessary contact where they might get the disease, and to avoid groups, large and small. | |
| Q: You made a joke about a “last gasp” attempt to get ventilators. Is that appropriate? | |
| Johnson says he was referring to the fact that manufacturers only have a few weeks to build more manufacturers. | |
| This question refers to a joke revealed in the London Playbook briefing. Here is the story, which describes the PM’s conference call with manufacturers yesterday. | |
| Q: What will you do to ensure this £330bn is allocated properly? | |
| Sunak says he is confident this can be delivered properly. There will be a retail compaign, so they hear about the coronavirus business interruption loan. | |
| Q: What will you do about shops? People are still panic buying. | |
| There is no need for that, Johnson says. | |
| Q: What inputs to the model changed that led you to change strategy? | |
| Vallance says the aim is to save the maximum number of lives. He says the proportion of people who make require ventilation looks higher. | |
| But it was not so much the model that changed as the place the UK was judged to be in the epidemic. | |
| Q: What sort of employment support are you looking at? Will the state pay wages? | |
| Sunak says he wants to find a way of helping businesses meet the fixed cost of paying their staff without having to let them go. There are international models available. But he wants something that will work quickly. | |
| Q: People are being laid off today. Would you urge firms to look at these measures first? | |
| Sunak says he hopes this announcement will tell business that help is on its way. He does not want them to lay people off. | |
| Q: People are confused by the advice about schools. You tell people not to mix, but you tell them to take their kids to schools where they will mix. When will you close schools? | |
| Johnson says the position with schools is “under continuous review”. | |
| Q: Many firms facing falling demand. Why is your help in the form of lending when these firms have no way of knowing what the future holds. They may not want to take on more debt? And why not announce today what you will do to ensure people are not penalised for staying away from work? | |
| Johnson says this is an extraordinary package of measures. | |
| One day the economy will bounce back, he says. | |
| Sunak says businesses have fixed costs, on rent and staff. For rent, the government is making cash grants available. | |
| On employees, Sunak says there have been improvements to SSP (statutory sick pay) and ESA (employment and support allowance). | |
| But he wants to develop a bold and ambitious employment support package, he says. | |
| There are options for this. He is working urgently on them with business and the unions. | |
| Q: The Imperial College paper yesterday said these measures could be in place for 18 months, while we look for a vaccine. Is that right? | |
| Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, says Imperial College have been working with the government all along. He says the suppression techniques need to be done in such a way that they can be released at some point. But he says no one in the world yet knows how to do this. | |
| He says vaccines are the answer. It used to take 20 years to develop one. Now work on one is starting already. But he says he does not think it will be ready within a year. | |
| Q: You are offering loans. How will people pay them back? | |
| Sunak says the loans are just one aspect of the policy. | |
| He says fiscal policy and monetary policy both play a part. There has been a significant monetary policy response already. | |
| He says this is a very comprehensive and sizeable package of direct fiscal support for businesses, in addition to the loans. | |
| And he says he plans to go further in terms of employment support. He will work with businesses and unions on this. | |
| Q: Do you take responsibility for the advice? And will you take responsibility for your dad? | |
| Johnson says of course he takes responsibility. The more people follow the advice, the more people will be saved. | |
| They are now taking questions. | They are now taking questions. |
| Q: Can you guarantee that firms who need to pay wages now, and people who need to pay rent now, will not lose out? | Q: Can you guarantee that firms who need to pay wages now, and people who need to pay rent now, will not lose out? |
| Johnson says the state is asking people to make considerable changes to their lives. And so it is only right that the state should stand behind them, he says. | Johnson says the state is asking people to make considerable changes to their lives. And so it is only right that the state should stand behind them, he says. |
| Sunak says people need this support as quickly as possible. With all these interventions, he has born in mind the need to operationalise them as soon as possible. | Sunak says people need this support as quickly as possible. With all these interventions, he has born in mind the need to operationalise them as soon as possible. |
| Anyone who urgently needs help should speak to the local authority. They have got emergency funds, he says. | Anyone who urgently needs help should speak to the local authority. They have got emergency funds, he says. |
| And he says they could talk to the banks. He says the banks have assured him that they will be supportive. | And he says they could talk to the banks. He says the banks have assured him that they will be supportive. |
| Sunak says these are only the first steps. | Sunak says these are only the first steps. |
| He is willing to do whatever it takes, he says. | He is willing to do whatever it takes, he says. |
| Sunak says mortgage lenders will give a three-month mortgage holiday to people who need help. | Sunak says mortgage lenders will give a three-month mortgage holiday to people who need help. |
| And he says he will be working on more measures to help people in employment. | And he says he will be working on more measures to help people in employment. |
| Sunak says he announced last week that some firms would have to pay no business rates this year. | Sunak says he announced last week that some firms would have to pay no business rates this year. |
| Those business will now get grants of up to £25,000, he says. | Those business will now get grants of up to £25,000, he says. |
| And he says the business rates holiday will apply to all firms in the hospitality or retail sector. | And he says the business rates holiday will apply to all firms in the hospitality or retail sector. |
| He says he is also making grants worth £10,000 available to the smallest firms. | He says he is also making grants worth £10,000 available to the smallest firms. |
| Sunak says the total package of help being given to businesses worth £20bn. | Sunak says the total package of help being given to businesses worth £20bn. |
| Sunak says he is making available £330bn of loan guarantees to businesses. | Sunak says he is making available £330bn of loan guarantees to businesses. |
| Any business that needs it will be able to access a loan on attractive terms. | Any business that needs it will be able to access a loan on attractive terms. |
| If he needs to go further, he will, he says. | If he needs to go further, he will, he says. |
| To support liquidity amongst larger firms, he has agreed a facility with the the Bank of England. | To support liquidity amongst larger firms, he has agreed a facility with the the Bank of England. |
| And for smaller firms he will extend the business interruption loan scheme, which will offer loans of up to £5m, | And for smaller firms he will extend the business interruption loan scheme, which will offer loans of up to £5m, |
| He says both schemes will be up and running by next week. | He says both schemes will be up and running by next week. |
| And there will be special help for airlines. | And there will be special help for airlines. |
| Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, says we have never in peacetime faced a fight like this one. | Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, says we have never in peacetime faced a fight like this one. |
| In the budget he promised to do whatever it took, he says. He says he said he would be willing to do more than the measures he announced last week, and he says he will begin that process. | In the budget he promised to do whatever it took, he says. He says he said he would be willing to do more than the measures he announced last week, and he says he will begin that process. |
| This is not a time for ideology or orthodoxy, he says. This is a time to be bold. | This is not a time for ideology or orthodoxy, he says. This is a time to be bold. |
| He says he will do whatever it takes to protect jobs and incomes. | He says he will do whatever it takes to protect jobs and incomes. |
| Johnson says we have the resolve and the resources to win this fight. | Johnson says we have the resolve and the resources to win this fight. |
| The government will do “whatever it takes”, he says. | The government will do “whatever it takes”, he says. |
| Johnson says a combination of measures will be needed to beat this disease. | Johnson says a combination of measures will be needed to beat this disease. |
| While we need national unity, we also need international cooperation. | While we need national unity, we also need international cooperation. |
| Johnson says the government must boost the NHS, and research the disease. | Johnson says the government must boost the NHS, and research the disease. |
| But it also has to take a wartime approach and boost the economy, he says. He says Rishi Sunak will say more in a moment. | But it also has to take a wartime approach and boost the economy, he says. He says Rishi Sunak will say more in a moment. |
| And the government has to protect public services too, he says. | And the government has to protect public services too, he says. |
| Boris Johnson is speaking now. | Boris Johnson is speaking now. |
| He says the government’s plan starts with fighting coronavirus. | He says the government’s plan starts with fighting coronavirus. |
| The measures announced yesterday will have an effect on the spread of the disease, he says. | The measures announced yesterday will have an effect on the spread of the disease, he says. |
| Johnson says the government may have to “go further” in terms of announcing measures to fight the disease, even though yesterday’s proposals were extreme. | Johnson says the government may have to “go further” in terms of announcing measures to fight the disease, even though yesterday’s proposals were extreme. |