The Chancellor’s warning about the state of Britain’s finances

The Chancellor’s emergency package for the self-employed is one of the most generous schemes to be offered worldwide so far, covering up to 95 per cent of the UK’s self-employed workforce. The details of the scheme, explained here, include a taxable grant worth up to 80 per cent of one’s profits over the past three years, capped at £2,500pm – notably on par with salaried workers who earn, on average, £340 more each month than self-employed workers.

There were plenty of potential pitfalls and unnecessary giveaways the Treasury managed to dodge: wary of dishing out cash to super-wealthy contractors and consultants, the Chancellor has only opened the scheme to workers trading with profits up to £50,000. To avoid fraud, it only applies to those already self-employed, with a 2019 tax return to prove it. And to avoid splashing cash on those who use their self-employment status to top-up their salary, the scheme only applies to those who get the majority of their income from being self-employed.