大象传媒

Self-employed workers can apply for a grant worth 80% of their average monthly profits to help them cope with the financial impact of coronavirus, the chancellor has announced; we hear more from Emma-Lou Montgomery at Fidelity International. As new US unemployment claims hit a record high, we hear from Cary Leahey of Decision Economics. The G20 have met online to discuss a global rescue. Adam Posen is president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and advised UK prime minister Gordon Brown ahead of the historic G20 meeting in 2009 where leaders agreed to plough more than $1 trillion into the world economy. He tells us how effective the G20 might be in dealing with this crisis. Also in the programme, we examine the economic impact of widespread lockdowns around the world on the world's most impoverished citizens. Amidst widespread coronavirus disruption, and with farms around the world reliant on seasonal labour to plant, prune, pick and pack our fresh produce, we ask whether some harvests might go to waste. We get a sense of the picture in China, which was the first country to fall victim to Covid-19, from Sun Yu of the Financial Times. Maximo Torero is the Food and Agriculture Organisation's chief economist, and offers some reassurance on global food supplies. And we hear about farm labour shortages in the UK from Ali Capper, who runs a fruit, vegetable and hop farm in western England, and chairs the Horticulture Board of the National Farmers' Union. Plus we have a report on how musicians whose appearances at festivals have been cancelled, are finding creative ways to make ends meet, and bring joy to their fans.

(Picture: Rishi Sunak by Matt Dunham for Getty Images).