ExcludedUK: Budget self-employment support is 'too little, too late'

Campaign group Excluded UK has branded the self-employed support announced at the Budget is “too little, too late” for the three million workers so far “excluded” from financial help during the pandemic.

Rishi Sunak’s announcement means people who became self-employed in the 2019/20 tax year would become eligible for the fourth Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant covering the months February to April this year.

ExcludedUK has been calling on the Chancellor to support three million people excluded from support, including self-employed workers, zero-hour contract workers and PAYE freelancers and more, throughout the pandemic. But Sonali Joshi, ExcludedUK co-founder, said today’s announcement will do little for the 10 per cent of the UK workforce already “plunged into debt and poverty”.

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Joshi told The Big Issue: “ExcludedUK welcomes the extension of SEISS with the inclusion of 2019/2020 tax returns in the calculation of trading profits, for which we have been campaigning vigorously over the last year. However, we know that at least three million taxpayers and households have been affected and even with this further support it does not account for this last year of decimated incomes and businesses for those who are now included, for whom this may be too little too late.

The system is broken. Heartbroken, but more determined than ever to right this wrong no matter how long it takes. You should be ashamed of yourself @RishiSunak, you have cost lives and there will be more!!! #disgusting #ExcludedUK

— ExcludedUK (@ExcludedUK) March 3, 2021

SEISS will continue until September with a fifth grant available to claim from July, Sunak confirmed as he described the programme as “one of the most generous in the world” at the Budget.

The scheme will become more targeted as the economy reopens at the end of summer with those who have seen their income fall 30 per cent still eligible for 80 per cent of their trading profits while those with less of a loss receiving 30 per cent of the entitlement.

Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross MP Jamie Stone, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Gaps in Support, warned the support will only help 150,000 people, citing Office for National Statistics self-employment figures. 

Frankly, that is a drop in the ocean compared to the scale of the problem

“After months of pressure from the APPG on Gaps in Support and campaign groups around the country, the Chancellor has finally accepted that he needs to address the gaping hole in support for the newly self-employed.

“But behind this announcement lies yet more pain and suffering. Frankly, that is a drop in the ocean compared to the scale of the problem, and unfortunately represents another kick in the teeth for PAYE freelancers, those denied furlough, the newly employed, limited company directors and many others.”

Extending support to newly self-employed is welcome but does not justify continuing to unfairly exclude so many others incl freelancers & limited company directors

Chancellor needs to keep listening to the justice of their case & act #Budget2021

— Caroline Lucas (@CarolineLucas) March 3, 2021

More than 100 MPs, experts and campaigners, including Money Saving Expert guru Martin Lewis, London Mayor Sadiq Khan and his Manchester counterpart Andy Burnham, signed an open letter to the chancellor from ExcludedUK alongside 3,485 individuals and businesses ahead of the Budget.

Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran was also among the politicians backing the campaign. She said: “The Conservatives have failed to right the wrong of excluding 3 million people from financial support during this pandemic, despite our repeated cross-party calls to fix this. 

“And the Government need to get their facts straight – according to the APPG Gaps in Support, their inclusion of more people in the SEISS will only help 151,000 people, not 600,000 as they claim. As a proportion of three million, it’s shockingly low. This must be fixed now.”