Prime minister Boris Johnson has agreed to meet opposition party leaders to discuss the potential for introducing a temporary “universal basic income” that would act as a safety net for jobs amid the covid-19 outbreak.

The PM made the commitment at Prime Minister’s Questions this afternoon and it follows mounting concerns that the emergency finance proposals – amounting to some £350bn – set out by chancellor Rishi Sunak on Tuesday may not be enough to stop mass redundancies.

One such fear was expressed by Penoyre & Prasad partner Mark Rowe, who observed on social media that the architecture sector needed support that was more rapid and appealing than the opportunity to borrow money.

…