The EconomistMarch 28th 2020 Britain 312 ing together every evening, rather than
waiting for a day when nobody is out. “Now
every day’s a Sunday,” says one. Panic buy-
ing has made trips to the supermarket a
thrilling game of potluck. The couple at no
122 yearn for broccoli. Another resident
says she would “love to buy a chicken”, as if
hankering after some exotic delicacy.
Once-neglected kitchens are in con-
stant use. One family’s kettle has broken
under the strain. Libraries are finally being
read. Mr Jones intends to work his way
through all the Star Wars and Batman films
before turning to every movie made by
Marvel, in chronological order: “I think we
have time.” Others are finding solace in re-
ligion. One says it is a good opportunity to
spend more time reading the Bible.
Many say the situation is strengthening
their friendships, as people check up on
each other. A resident of 44 years’ standing,
who has only ever been “on nodding ac-
quaintance” with neighbours, is now on a
WhatsApp group, organising support for
the elderly. One member of the group has
volunteered to lead online workouts. Many
are fantasising about the end of the crisis;
some are hoping to throw a street party. But
even being woken up by a plane would be a
welcome glimmer of normality. 7
I
n other circumstances, the verdict
would have been the Scottish political
event of the year. On March 23rd Alex Salm-
ond, Scotland’s former first minister, was
found not guilty of 12 charges of sexual as-
sault. The jury found a thirteenth charge to
be not proven.
Mr Salmond is a free man. But it is clear
that he does not intend to go quietly. He
greeted his acquittal with the claim that
during the trial his legal team had been un-
able to produce “certain evidence” but it
would now “see the light of day”. During the
trial he claimed that the allegations against
him—which ranged from indecent assault
to attempted rape—had been “deliberate
fabrications for political purposes”.
The verdict is an embarrassment for the
Crown Office, Scotland’s criminal-prose-
cution service, and for the Scottish police.
Nine women gave evidence and were ex-
tensively cross-examined. But the real
pressure is on Nicola Sturgeon, Mr Salm-
ond’s successor—both as first minister of
Scotland and as leader of the Scottish Na-
tional Party (snp). Mr Salmond and his al-
lies in the nationalist ranks are coming
after her and her husband, snpchief exec-
utive Peter Murrell.
Mr Salmond and Ms Sturgeon had been
growing apart long before he faced crimi-
nal charges. Whereas she has approached
the independence question cautiously,
since 2016 he has called for the country to
hold a new referendum quickly. His arrest
and trial put a gulf between them. Several
of his accusers were close to her and he
seems to blame her for his ordeal.
Kenny MacAskill, an snpWestminster
mpand formerly Scotland’s justice minis-
ter, said that he was “delighted” for Mr
Salmond and that now “some resigna-
tions” were “required”. Joanna Cherry, an-
other snp mpand a staunch Salmond ally
who hopes to stand for election to the Scot-
tish Parliament next year, said that she was
sure the snp’s chief executive would wel-
come an independent review into the Scot-
tish government’s handling of the case. Ms
Sturgeon and Mr Murrell may have de-
tected a hint of menace in her remarks.
Compared with spread of covid-19, Mr
Salmond’s claims of a conspiracy against
him may seem trivial. But when the virus
recedes, the former first minister and his
supporters will be waiting for the current
first minister and her husband. And they
will have revenge in their hearts. 7The end of Alex Salmond’s trial is not
the end of the storyScottish politicsLeaping Salmond
T
here arenow stark contrasts on Brit-
ain’s high streets. Non-essential stores
are closed by government fiat, but super-
markets and food stores continue to expe-
rience high demand. Slots for online groc-
ery deliveries now attract the kind of digital
queues associated with Glastonbury Festi-
val tickets. The big supermarket chains are
on a recruitment drive. Tesco, Britain’s
largest, wants to hire 20,000 temporary
workers while Morrison’s is looking for
3,500 more workers for its delivery busi-
ness. Unlike toilet rolls, though, the jobs
are not being snapped up quickly.
On March 20th Rishi Sunak, the chan-
cellor, announced an unprecedented inter-
vention in the labour market. Under the
Coronavirus Jobs Retention Scheme, firms
hit by a sharp fall in demand have the op-
tion to furlough their workers instead of
sacking them. Those furloughed will re-
ceive 80% of their salary, up to a maximum
of £2,500 ($2,900) with the bill being
picked up by the Treasury. Employees on
the scheme will not be allowed to work.
The scheme has been widely welcomed.Capital Economics, a consultancy, reckon
that, thanks to the scheme and other mea-
sures, unemployment may stay at or under
6% (up from around 4% currently) rather
than heading back to the 8% seen during
the financial crisis of 2007-2009. But the
furloughing scheme, drawn up in a hurry,
still has kinks to work out. Under the pre-
sent rules it is somewhat binary: a firm can
either furlough a worker or not furlough
them. An employee who, for example, sees
their hours cut by half will not be eligible
for support. Rather than an all-or-nothing
deal, many firms would appreciate being
able to cut staff hours, knowing that the
government would cushion the blow to
employee incomes.
The scheme is also causing issues in the
jobs market. Some sectors are still trying to
hire, according to Indeed, a recruitment
website. Customer-service adverts are up
by 3%; security and warehouse jobs are up
by 2%. The obvious solution would be for
non-essential stores to loan staff to areas in
high demand. But that appears unlikely to
happen. For many furloughed workers,
staying at home on 80% of their previous
salary with lower travel and child-care
costs, not to mention less risk of infection,
is a more attractive option than stacking
shelves or loading deliveries.
Xiaowei Xu, an economist at the Insti-
tute for Fiscal Studies, a think-tank, argues
that “alongside the imperative to protect
jobs that will still be viable and productive
once the crisis has passed, there is also an
urgent need to reallocate some workers in
sectors that have temporarily shut down to
those facing labour shortages”. That may
mean tweaking the retention scheme so
that “it is available to furloughed workers
who take up temporary work in priority
sectors”. So far in this crisis, government
policy has done a good job at supporting
employment but unless resources are able
to shift to where demand is still strong,
bottlenecks and disruption will follow. 7Intervention in the jobs market has
some unintended consequencesSaving jobsFurlough
maintenance
Keeping food retail rolling