The Chancellor’s announcement of government help for the self employed in light of the disruption caused by coronavirus is a welcome support measure which will help the most vulnerable businesses.

That’s the view of Johnny Hanna, Partner In Charge of KPMG in Northern Ireland, who said the move is a key part of the package of measures recently announced by the UK government.

“This is another landmark and welcome support measure aimed at preserving some of the most vulnerable businesses impacted by the present crisis,” he said.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak made the announcement on Thursday of the introduction of the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme.

Mr Hanna said the UK government had recognised “the complexity of introducing a support package along similar lines to the Job Retention Scheme” and was “under pressure to support small business following the introduction of stricter lockdown measures in the UK.”

He said the measures will help the self employed at the lower end of the earning scale.

“Targeted at self-employed individuals with average profits of broadly less than £50,000 per annum and offering income level guarantees similar to employed earners. However, those who started a business during the current 2019/20 tax year will be excluded and for those who qualify, the support payments are not expected until June with the potential for the self-employed to pay taxes at similar rates to employees in the future.”