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Scottish Secretary Alister Jack responds to June 2021 GDP

Our main aim is to build back better and stronger from the pandemic, says the Secretary of State for Scotland.

From:
Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland and The Rt Hon Alister Jack
Published
25 August 2021
This was published under the 2019 to 2022 Johnson Conservative government

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said:

While today鈥檚 figures show some resilience, we still face challenges. A strong, sustainable recovery remains our priority.

The UK Government put unprecedented measures in place from the very beginning of the pandemic to protect lives and livelihoods.聽That鈥檚 included supporting the jobs of nearly a million people in Scotland through furlough and with unprecedented financial help for the self-employed. More than 90,000 businesses have benefited from business loans and VAT cuts have聽kept firms in the hardest hit sectors afloat.

We鈥檝e provided the Scottish Government with more than 拢14.5聽billion in additional聽funding, 拢1.5 billion has been invested in growth deals across Scotland and聽our new Levelling Up and Community Renewal Funds will benefit communities right across the UK.

In driving our economy into recovery, our Plan for Jobs will help more people get back into work and the success of the UK聽Government-funded vaccine programme is paving the way for us to build back better and stronger.

Background:

  • The UK Government鈥檚 furlough scheme has been extended until the end of September 2021, paying up to 80 percent of wages.聽The self-employed support scheme has also been extended to the end of September 2021.聽The furlough scheme in Scotland supported cumulative more than 900,000 jobs alone.

  • More than 100,000 businesses in Scotland have been supported from UK Government business loans worth 拢4 billion.

  • The UK Government has provided billions in extra funding for the welfare system for those unable to access other forms of support.

  • This direct support is on top of the additional 拢14.5 billion provided to the Government since the start of the pandemic.

  • The UK Government is investing billions to help people of all ages back into work, including our 拢2 billion Kickstart scheme for young people, sector work programmes and recruitment of thousands of additional Work Coaches.

  • The UK Government continues to provide the bulk of Covid testing in Scotland and has moved quickly to buy vaccines, securing more than聽500 million doses from seven vaccine developers for distribution across all parts of the UK.聽The UK Government is providing all covid testing in Scotland outside of the NHS.

Updates to this page

Published 25 August 2021