• Children of parents who lose jobs over summer risk losing free school meals
• New Govt campaign will fill businesses with horror

Children of parents who lose jobs over summer risk losing free school meals

Children of parents who lose their jobs over the coming weeks risk missing out on free school meals over the summer because of a loophole in the scheme, Liberal Democrat Education spokesperson Layla Moran has warned.

It comes following a wave of job losses this week, with John Lewis and Boots alone cutting 5,300 jobs.

The current government guidelines say you must apply for a voucher for the Covid Summer Food Fund one week before school ends. For the majority of schools that close on 20 July, this means you must apply by Monday 13 July. Only children who qualify for school meals before the end of the term are eligible for support from the fund.

Layla Moran has written to Education Secretary Gavin Williamson warning the rule could mean thousands of children could end up “falling through the cracks”. She has urged the government to urgently close this loophole so that parents who lose their jobs, but miss the current deadline, can still access vouchers through the scheme over the summer. Layla is also calling for more support to help prevent children falling into poverty, including an emergency uplift in child benefit.

Liberal Democrat Education spokesperson Layla Moran said:

The deadline of this week means that for those parents sadly losing their jobs as a result of the crisis, it will be too late to apply for free school meals.

Thousands of children risk falling through the cracks and going hungry over the summer unless this loophole is closed.

This crisis has shown that, at heart, we are a compassionate country. The government now needs to wake up to that reality and ensure no child is left behind.

New Govt campaign will fill businesses with horror

Responding to the Government’s announcement of their new campaign for businesses to prepare for the end of the transition period, Acting Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said:

Businesses right across the United Kingdom have struggled to survive financially over the past few months as a result of the coronavirus crisis. The fact that the Government is now trying to force them to gear up and prepare for the end of the transition period will fill them with utter horror.

The coronavirus crisis has been an unprecedented challenge on British business, with many being forced to let go of staff and some even closing their doors for good. As our economy struggles to recover, the Tories dragging us towards another economic hit will mean a vast amount of businesses worrying if they can stay afloat.

This is yet another example of the mess the Tories are making, whilst giving little thought to those affected by their actions. It is time Ministers sought as close as possible relationship with the European Union to not only minimise the damage to the UK, but allow both themselves and British business time to focus on getting the UK back on its feet again after the pandemic.