
Government Coronavirus Action Plan
The Government has today issued a Coronavirus action plan outlining what has been done to date to tackle the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, and what it plans to do next.
This plan can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-action-plan.
Key things to note:
- It is more likely than not that the UK will be significantly affected.
- Given that the data are still emerging, they are uncertain of the impact of an outbreak on business.
- Up to one fifth of employees may be absent from work during peak weeks. This may vary for individual businesses.
- Planning draws on “reasonable worst case (RWC)” scenario.
- The nature and scale of the response depends on the course of the disease, which cannot be predicted accurately at this point.
- If the disease becomes established in the UK, we will need to consider further measures to reduce the rate and extent of its spread.
- Actions could include population distancing strategies (such as school closures, encouraging greater home working, reducing the number of large scale gatherings)
- For businesses facing short term cash flow issues (for example, as the result of subdued demand), an effective mitigation already exists in HMRC’s Time To Pay system. This is offered on a case by case basis if a firm or individual contacts HMRC about falling behind on their tax
- The UK Government is advising businesses to build their own resilience by reviewing their business continuity plans and following the advice for employers available on GOV.UK – https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19
- Businesses should also ensure that they keep up to date with the situation as it changes, at: www.gov.uk/coronavirus