UK eyes one-off COVID-19 grant instead of permanent benefit hike - Times

People shop at market stalls, with skyscrapers of the CIty of London financial district seen behind, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in London, Britain, January 15, 2021. REUTERS/Toby Melville

LONDON (Reuters) - British finance minister Rishi Sunak has proposed giving a one-off 500 pound ($679) grant to recipients of the country's main unemployment and wage support benefit instead of extending a temporary increase on the welfare payments, The Times reported on Saturday.

British welfare benefits for working-age adults are low compared with elsewhere in Europe, and the government temporarily increased them by 20 pounds per week last year at the start of the coronavirus pandemic as job openings dried up.