10m now unemployed or on furlough

I read it as those he works with are vulnerable so they've had to cease operations and furlough everyone

 

the people we deal with are either elderly or severely disabled so are at risk

 

So who is dealing with them? I presume they still need care/help/assistance, etc and leaving them alone for 2-3 months would also be a big risk.

 

At the end of the day we all have our opinions on what should happen. I think we're all unlikely to change our minds, which is fine.
Thankfully nobody on here is the one making the decisions. There is no right answer

 

Agreed.

 

They have carers and families looking after them but we can’t take them to daycare centres college, school etc until we get the all clear from the council regarding daycentres opening up again

 

Exactly and one of the many baffling things through all of this as been why have take aways been allowed to trade? People should have used this to go back to home cooking healthy options.

 

Ok. cheers mate understand now. Thanks for the clarification

 

indeed I do. A friend is on a zero hours contract and relatively often works not at all or turns up works for an hour and is told to go home. All the people they work with are in the same boat.

 

We haven’t got many joys left and you want to shut takeaways? Bet you’re a barrel of laughs.

 

And as above - whilst they’ll appear in the number of ‘employed’ people, the job centre won’t treat them as if they’re employed.
If they’re claiming benefits they’re expected to look for full time work.

numbers are one thing - they don’t change the facts though, they might change what some people believe are ‘facts’.

 

the job centre does not class them as unemployed. My friend is classified as employed though as you say encouraged to seek full time work if at all possible.

My friend shows as employed not unemployed for statistical purposes as does everyone they work with in a large scale company

Another friend gave up any attempt to claim benefits as in truth universal credit is not tailored to zero hours contracts.

 

You mention Brexit but could brexit be a blessing in the current climate? The EU are struggling massively at the moment and their economy is just as bad as ours if not worse. I think this is the perfect time to leave and make our own decisions, new trade agreements, cut corporation tax to encourage businesses. Plus we won’t be paying into European coffers to help with their debt problems, because that is what France and Germany will have to do.

 

We have taken Civil Servants away from COVID planning to move them back to Brexit no-deal planning. We are putting effectively a customs border in the middle of the country and want to make it hard to import goods to Great Britain while in the middle of a pandemic when supply lines are already struggling, while the EU are tightening rules up to make it harder for non-EU firms to do business there. The UK will be facing around 5-10% hit to GDP in good times and these are not good times.

And various sources from the government are crowing over the fantastic benefits of new trade deals (expected to add 0.1-0.2% to GDP in the case of the USA) while simultaneously arguing that losing what will always be our biggest trade deal won't have any effect. And those other trade deals we have now are either not being replaced immediately (Mecosur) or are being renegotiated on worse terms (Japan, South Korea) - and before anyone argues about that, it legally *has* to be on worse terms due to the renegotiation clauses in their deals with the EU that have to start within 3 months if any country gets a competitive advantage from a new deal.

 

I've been told I should be back by October but I'm not holding my breath.

 

So you agree with me.

 

I hear you Scoff, you obviously know your stuff. So any trade deal we negotiate with Say Japan and South Korea has to be worse? So we could have a deal 0.01% on worse terms, simples. Will European businesses not want to sell to us? I’m sure if Europe make it harder for non EU countries to do business there they are only screwing themselves surely? Will European businesses not want to buy from us? Will Europe not want to fish in our fishing grounds? (I know they do) Apparently 80% of fish caught in British waters are from European boats so surely that’s something to negotiate on? I’m sure there’s plenty of pro’s & cons but Brexit is happening. The sooner Europe realise this the better instead of trying to Screw us at every opportunity. I get the feeling the EU would rather see us suffer than Negotiate a deal that’s good for both party’s and is good for European citizens & businesses.
Time will tell.