Recommendation 2

Whilst we welcome the overall level of support offered, we are disappointed that the Government has repeatedly chosen not to adapt and refine its support to address identified gaps in coverage. It is unacceptable that 11 months into the pandemic approximately 3 million people have fallen through the cracks. Mothers being discriminated against by virtue of having taken parental leave in the last three years is a particularly egregious example of the failure to refine support. We agree with the Treasury Committee (in its Eleventh Report, Economic impact of coronavirus: gaps in support and economic analysis) that the Government’s approach to employees and self-employed people has in practice been inconsistent, unfair and discriminatory.