The Government has to generate revenue quickly, but austerity and spending cuts are not viable options.
One area that has had relatively little attention, but could get much more, is the behaviour of commercial landlords across the country.
As a member of his first Cabinet, I was tested in Northern Ireland – as elsewhere the new government reduced the defict and reformed public services.
The Small Business Grant scheme should cover these businesses – and the furloughing plan allow sole company directors to work.
Following this road will require a transformation of how we work and live on an expectation-defying scale.
As in 2008, the line between survival and disaster will rest on the bond markets’ trust in the British Government and on the reputation of the Bank of England.
Hopefully it will be crisis averted, and we’ll have a bit more time to fix the hole. But sooner or later, difficult choices on tax and spending are coming.
Ministers can carry on trying, through the British Business Bank or directly, to push on this Gordian Knot – or slice through it.
It should remove those taxes and regulations that will stop business from applying their ingenuity on the problem of rebuilding from the ruins.
Johnson will seek to keep ahead of public opinion. The art for him is to not to be caught out by a sudden shift in mood.
We don’t expect the shutdown to last in full until summer. But if it did, Britain might well be moving towards Universal Credit as a basic income.
Large numbers of people are falling through the eligibility gaps – caught between schemes for the employed and self-employed.
If employers consider themselves to be heading for catastrophe, it suggests that the wider public will catch up before too long.
The Treasury’s decision is a vital moment in the battle against coronavirus and in the emerging consensus about the country we want to be in future.
The Government should temporarily suspend or increase the benefit cap – so that all families on UC benefit from the emergency measures.