Hannah Vickers, chief executive of the Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE), comments on the Government's extension of the furlough scheme until October 2020.

"I am delighted that the Chancellor has agreed to extend and introduce flexibility to the furlough scheme as proposed by the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) and ACE on behalf of the industry as this will provide confidence to both employers and workers that they will no longer face a cliff-edge in June.

"This new part-time furloughing scheme is in everyone's interests as it allows companies to bring back more staff on a rota and prevent steep cuts to employment while limiting the cost to the taxpayer. We will await the full details of how the scheme will be implemented in due course but it’s the right headline commitment from the Government."