Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 9 September 2020
97. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Finance the estimated cost of the temporary wage subsidy scheme in 2020; the projected cost if it had been retained for the rest of the year; the number of employers that accessed the scheme; the number of employees who have been supported; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22928/20]
View answer98. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Finance the projected cost of the employment wage subsidy scheme in 2020 and 2021; the projected cost if it had been retained at the same rate as the temporary wage subsidy scheme; the number of employers that have accessed the scheme; the number of employees who have been supported; the estimated full-year cost for 2021 if it were extended for the rest of the year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22929/20]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 97 and 98 together.
Between March and August 2020, over 65,000 employers have received a subsidy under the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS) with payments worth over €2.8 billion paid out to a total of 663,100 workers. The average monthly cost is around €500m which would be the expected cost per month if the measure was to be retained beyond the end date of 31 August.
Revenue published detailed statistical updates on the TWSS on a weekly basis for the duration of the scheme in order to provide as timely and transparent data on the utilisation and impact of the TWSS as possible. These statistics are available at: https://www.revenue.ie/en/corporate/information-about-revenue/statistics/number-of-taxpayers-and-returns/covid-19-wage-subsidy-scheme-statistics.aspx.
The Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) was legislated for in the recently enacted Financial Provisions (Covid-19) (No. 2) Act 2020, replacing the TWSS from 1 September 2020 until March 2021. It provides a flat-rate subsidy to qualifying employers, based on the number of qualifying employees on the payroll. This adaptation from the TWSS will allow employers to rely on the continuation of support over a longer period of 8 months while also ensuring such support is sustainable and affordable.
Revenue has confirmed that it has started to include information on the EWSS in their statistics, also located at the above link. As of 7 September, over 30,000 employers have registered for the Scheme. The EWSS detail in the statistics, including the numbers of employees being supported, will be expanded in the coming weeks as the scheme progresses.
It is expected that the EWSS will support around 350,000 jobs into the beginning of 2021. On this basis, it is estimated that the EWSS will cost €2.25 billion (€1.35 billion in 2020 inclusive of seasonal workers and €0.9 billion in 2021). All things remaining the same, a tentative estimate of the additional cost if the EWSS was to be extended for the full year 2021 would be in the region of €3 billion. The scheme is demand led and a significant surge in claims may require a policy review and re-evaluation of the terms of the scheme. These cost predictions are therefore subject to review and for every additional 50,000 qualifying employments, the cost increases by €0.25 billion.
Although many of the strictest public health restrictions on the economy have been eased it is recognised that economic outputs are unlikely to return to normal for many businesses for much of the rest of 2020 because of the continued need to observe some requirements such as social distancing. The Government is therefore committed to a wage subsidy scheme to maintain the link between the employee and employer insofar as is possible into 2021.
