Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
MPs have urged the Treasury to do more to help the 1m or more self-employed and others who have slipped through the cracks of coronavirus funding schemes.
Rishi Sunak is facing calls to “completely fulfil” his promise to do “whatever it takes” to support the economy after MPs concluded that many newly employed staff, self-employed workers, company directors and freelancers have been “locked out” of the Government emergency rescue package.
The Treasury select committee estimates that many hundreds of thousands of people have already endured several months of financial hardship “through no fault of their own”.
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Its report on the gaps in support for economic impact of coronavirus found that hundreds of thousands of people are missing out on support because they started new jobs after the cut-off date for qualifying.
Meanwhile, the self-employed income support scheme is not open to an estimated 225,000 people whose trading profits exceed a £50,000 cap. This includes many working in the creative industries whose earnings are just above the cap.
The SEISS also excludes hundreds of thousands of people who became self-employed too recently to have tax records, along with directors