AN EXTENSION to the furlough scheme must be implemented in order to protect jobs in Wales according to one Gwent MP.

Nick Smith, MP for Blaenau Gwent, is calling for decisive action to be taken while public health restrictions remain in place.

Analysis by the Labour Party estimates that, in Blaenau Gwent, 3,580 people were still furloughed by their employer in late January, seven months after Rishi Sunak launched his ‘Plan for Jobs’.

The Chancellor initially triggered a one-size-fits-all wind down of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) last July.

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After several changes over the autumn and winter, the scheme is now set to expire at the end of April.

Labour say they are calling for Mr Sunak to immediately announce an extension to the furlough scheme, to remove uncertainty for local businesses and workers.

Last September Mr Smith spoke about the scheme in Parliament, emphasising that if £2bn of public spending is going to go into the scheme then it must prove to be value for money and provide a practical route in to work for young people.

The latest figures show that there are currently 590,000 people aged 16-24 out of work and just 2,000 are now on Kickstart placements.

Figures also show that 1,800 people in Blaenau Gwent had made claims under the Coronavirus Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) by the end of July.

Nick Smith MP said: “It’s now seven months on, and the Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs is not working. We have record redundancies, soaring numbers of people out of work and the worst economic crisis of any major economy.

“We need urgent action to secure, recover and create jobs. This must include a smarter furlough scheme and an overhaul of the failing Kickstart youth programme.

“People can’t afford for the Chancellor to dither and delay these decisions until the Budget. They need action today.”