It was announced on Tuesday that the government is to extend its the furlough scheme for another four months. Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the scheme, which pays up to 80% of companies staff salaries during the coronavrius pandemic, will now be in place until the end of October.
This means that workers will continue to receive up to £2,500 a month under the Job Retention Scheme, which is currently being used by 6.3 million workers at a cost of around £8 billion.
Mr Sunak made his announcement after saying last week that the scheme would be 'wound down'. While an extension has been made, he also said changes will be made to the scheme from August and employers will be asked to start making contributions towards workers' wages.