Budget July 2020

Scotland will receive a total of £4.6bn in additional Barnett funding from the UK Government. It will be up to the Scottish Government on how they wish to spent these additional funds to help Scotland's economy.

The following announcements made by the Chancellor will apply to Scotland.

Help for the hospitality sector

VAT on food, accommodation and attractions will be cut across the UK from 20% to 5% from next Wednesday.

The cut will apply to eat-in or hot takeaway food from restaurants, cafes and pubs, accommodation in hotels, B&Bs, campsites and caravan sites, attractions like cinemas, theme parks and zoos.

The Chancellor also unveiled a scheme to give 50% off to people dining out across the UK in August.

Furloughed Employees

All businesses can claim a £1,000 bonus for every furloughed employee they keep on until the end of January, and pay at least £520 a month.

As previously announed Furloughed employees can now go back to work part-time, and from August, employers will have to pay National Insurance and pension contributions for their staff.

In September, they will have to pay 10% of their furloughed employees' salaries - rising to 20% in October.

"Kickstart Scheme" to create more jobs for young people

The fund will subsidise six-month work placements for people on Universal Credit aged between 16 and 24, who are at risk of long-term unemployment.

For each "kickstarter" job, the government will cover the cost of 25 hours' work a week at the National Minimum Wage - £4.55 for under 18s, £6.45 for 18 to 20-year-olds, and £8.20 for 21 to 24-year-olds.

Employers will be able to top up that payment if they wish.

The scheme will open for applications in August, with the first jobs expected to start in the autumn, and run until December 2021 - with the option of being extended.

Some examples of other announcements that don't apply to Scotland are below, we will need to wait and see what the Scottish Government announces and how they plan to spend the additional funds in the days and weeks ahead.

1. Stamp duty cut
2. Up to £5,000 per household for projects to make homes more energy
3. Up to £10,000 per household fully funded for low-income households
4. £1,000 grant per trainee for employers who take on new trainees aged 16-24 
5. £2,000 grant for employers per apprentice under 25 hired, £1,500 for those over 25, for six months starting 1 August