PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
Support for small limited companies (20 April 2020)

That this House commends the Chancellor’s job retention schemes to help the employed and the self-employed during the covid-19 outbreak; in addition acknowledges that thousands of people working in a creative freelance capacity are excluded from those schemes; notes that directors of small limited companies that are often comprised of one person cannot access either scheme; further notes that, because of the way the arts industry typically functions, these people usually pay themselves a low salary and rely heavily on dividends; further acknowledges that this means that receiving 80 per cent of their salary, as offered by the schemes set out by the Chancellor, is not enough to live on; and calls on the Government to close the loophole in the job retention schemes by allowing small limited company directors to claim for 80 per cent of filed average earnings, including dividends.

Sponsored by:
Jamie Stone (Liberal Democrat)