Fears for jobs grow as employers count cost of Sunak’s winter plan

The new measures for workers on the furlough scheme are not generous enough to prevent a damaging rise in unemployment

There are several moving parts in the engine designed by Rishi Sunak to keep the British economy motoring into next year. The most important is the replacement for the furlough scheme that has kept about 9 million workers in employment at some point in the last six months.

Only days before the chancellor stood up to deliver his winter economy plan" on Thursday, Boris Johnson announced a six-month extension to restrictions on sporting and cultural events and a new rule of six", restricting the number of people who could gather at any one time.

We expect the unemployment rate to rise further, to at least 7% by the middle of next year