As of Sunday 12 July, 9.4 million workers have been furloughed by 1.2 million employers. In total, the value of claims under the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) stands at £28.7bn.

This is the same number of furloughed workers as a week ago but the total value of claims to cover staff wages under the scheme has jumped from £27.4bn to £28.7bn. The government releases weekly furlough figures every Tuesday.

Support for the self-employed

Claims made by self-employed workers who are struggling during the pandemic have remained at 2.7 million for the second week running.

However, the total value of claims made under the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) which launched in May, has increased from £7.7bn to £7.8bn.

The deadline for applications for the first SEISS grant closed yesterday. A second grant will be available for self-employed workers from August.

This second grant will be payable at a level equivalent to 70% of the taxpayer’s annual average profits, capped at £2,190 per month, so the maximum amount payable will be £6,570 to cover three months.

Support for businesses

Separate figures from the Treasury show that £46.3bn has been given in loans to struggling businesses.

Under the Bounce Back Loan Scheme, more than 1,047,611 businesses have received £31.70bn in loans. As of 12 July, 1.28 million applications for the scheme had been submitted.

As part of the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, £11.85bn has been approved to help more than 54,500 businesses, with more than 109,000 applications having been made under the scheme.

Turning to the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme, the Treasury statistics revealed £2.73bn of loans have been approved for 412 businesses, with 809 applications having been received.

Stephen Pegge, managing director of commercial finance at UK Finance, said: “This significant level of support demonstrates the clear commitment from the banking and finance industry to help businesses get through these tough times.

“More than 1.1 million businesses large and small have received £46.3bn worth of support through the government-backed lending schemes.

“This sits alongside the broad package of measures from the industry including commercial lending, capital repayment holidays, extended overdrafts and asset-based finance, ensuring that businesses can receive the right support that suits their needs.

“It’s important to remember that any lending provided under government-backed schemes is a debt not a grant, and so firms should carefully consider their ability to repay before applying.”