One of the most pressing issues arising from the Coronavirus pandemic is the significant loss of jobs. In our constituency alone 5,700 jobs are at risk. I therefore sponsored an Opposition Day motion in the House of Commons calling for the Government to abandon its one-size-fits-all withdrawal of the Coronavirus Job Retention and Self-Employment Income Support Schemes. Instead I would like to see the Government offer targeted income support to businesses and self-employed people in those sectors of the economy that have been hardest hit by the virus and are most in need of continuing assistance, and in those areas of the country which have been placed under local restrictions due to rising rates of infection. A targeted extension is vital for sectors that are critical to the UK’s economic recovery. This includes highly skilled manufacturing and the creative industries. Unfortunately, the Government refused to extend the schemes. Labour will continue to press the Government to save jobs.