Fashion business run by footballer lingard in tax claims saga

 

An online fashion business run by Jesse Lingard has reportedly claimed taxpayers’ cash to furlough staff through a state-funded scheme, despite the footballer earning more than £100,000 per week.

The clothing firm, JLingz, sells printed backpacks for £100 and hoodies for £45 while employing at least three people including the West Ham and England midfielder.

It is described as a ‘celebration of ready-to-wear streetwear with occasional limited drops,’ but according to the Sun the brand has previously posed losses of up to £250,000.

It has now been alleged the firm has claimed taxpayers’ cash through the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) to furlough staff.

The CJRS, running since the first lockdown almost a year ago, is designed to help cash-strapped employers survive the lean months of the pandemic.

The clothing firm, JLingz, sells printed backpacks for £100 and hoodies for £45 while employing three people including the West Ham and England midfielder.

An insider claimed Lingard, 28, who has a £2.8million home in Cheshire, was unaware of the furlough claim and is now investigating it.

‘The furlough scheme was meant to help small businesses, not those launched by multi-millionaires,’ a source said.

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Lingard’s fashion business JLingz is among a series of celebrity firms alleged to have claimed cash through the state-run furlough scheme.

Little Mix singer Jade Thirlwall’s firm Chain Reaction Ltd is alleged to have received furlough cash in December for the trendy Arbeia bar in South Shields, Tyneside.