Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Gareth Thomas)
Businesses in rural areas offer significant potential for growth and are central to our economy. We are working across Government to unlock the full potential of rural businesses as part of the Government’s growth mission. We are committed to launching a business growth service inspired by the US Small Business Administration, which will operate in partnership with devolved Governments and the growth hub network in England to make it easier to access support from Government for all businesses.
Jamie Stone
In conversation this morning with Trudy Morris, the CEO of the Caithness chamber of commerce, she outlined the sheer importance of tourism businesses to the local economy and the farmers in Scotland. The concern expressed to me is on the rate of VAT on tourism and similar businesses, and although we do not know whether the Highland council will impose a tourism levy, that could be a double whammy. I do not expect for one instant hon. Members on the Front Bench to say, “Jamie, you can have a cut in the rate of VAT”—well, I dream sometimes—but I would be grateful for a meeting to discuss the nature of the problem and how we could possibly tackle it.
Gareth Thomas
I apologise to the hon. Gentleman, as I cannot fulfil his dreams right now. However, I am happy to meet him to talk about that issue. I recognise that there is considerable interest in that question from the hospitality industry, so I am happy to meet to hear, in a bit more detail, the particular concerns expressed to him.
Dame Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)
The Business Secretary, the Minister and the Chancellor have all said that they want growth, including in rural areas. I have searched high and low for business growth statistics since the Budget of broken promises, and I find that, in the last quarter, there has been a growth of 50% in the number of businesses that are in critical financial distress. Why does the Minister think that is?
Gareth Thomas
I say gently to the hon. Lady that the difficult decisions that my right hon. Friend the Chancellor had to take in the Budget were, interestingly, particularly well explained by her former colleague Kwasi Kwarteng, who made it clear that he thought they had to be taken because of the mistakes that he and the Conservative party had made when they were in government.
Shaun Davies (Telford) (Lab)
The Minister for Industry (Sarah Jones)
It was a good night for Villa fans last night, so I congratulate anyone in the west midlands who supports the club, as my husband does.
The west midlands, in many ways, leads the country on manufacturing, and it has one of the UK’s largest specialist workforces. Whether in automotive, aerospace or the rail supply chain, it is an incredibly important area. We have invested in the west midlands investment zone—Made Smarter, the High Value Manufacturing Catapult; it is all there—but we want to keep breaking down barriers to growth in the area, which is why advanced manufacturing is such a key part of the industrial strategy that we will announce soon.
Shaun Davies
In Telford and the wider west midlands, we have a strong and proud British manufacturing base, as the Minister has just outlined. One of the biggest challenges that I hear from businesses is the uneven playing field between us and the rest of the world on pay rates and regulation. Clearly, no one wants a race to the bottom, so will the Government back British business to ensure that we sell more, make more and do that in the west midlands and in Telford in particular?
Sarah Jones
My hon. Friend is absolutely right; we do not want a race to the bottom. Advanced manufacturing jobs in the west midlands are well paid for a reason: there is a very highly skilled workforce and we want to protect and grow that. He is right that there is more that we can do. Some £2 billion was set aside in the Budget for the automative sector and just shy of £1 billion for aerospace. That will help; however, we can further reduce the barriers, whether around regulation, planning or trading and export, and we are working as fast as we can to do just that.
Sir Gavin Williamson (Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge) (Con)
In Staffordshire and the west midlands, we are the only part of the country that is a net exporter of manufactured goods. The threat from Trump on tariffs could have a significant impact on manufacturers right across Staffordshire and the west midlands. What action are the Government taking to ensure that we will continue to export our world-leading products?
Sarah Jones
The right hon. Gentleman is right that the west midlands is a big exporter to many different countries, including the US and others. Of course, we will keep talking with the US, as the Secretary of State has been doing, and will ensure that we are standing up for British industry and doing the right thing.
Callum Anderson (Buckingham and Bletchley) (Lab)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)
The regulatory environment does not work as well as it should. Unnecessary red tape is choking competitiveness, creating unnecessary burdens for business and putting up barriers to growth. That is why we are introducing a Government-wide target to reduce the administrative costs of regulation by 25% by the end of this Parliament. That will be supported by a baselining exercise to understand the administrative costs of regulation to businesses. The Prime Minister will set out more details later today. This is just the beginning; details of our ambitious action plan to reform the regulatory landscape will be set out shortly.
Callum Anderson
Over eight years and four Prime Ministers, the last Conservative Government commissioned review after review into UK corporate governance and audit reform, and delivered absolutely nothing. For UK plc to be globally competitive, we need robust corporate governance frameworks which balance the needs of investors and society for information with the administrative burdens on companies. Will the Minister update the House on what progress his Department is making on bringing forward an audit reform and corporate governance Bill?
Justin Madders
As my hon. Friend is right to recognise, this issue has been around for some time, and the Government have announced their intention to publish a draft audit reform and corporate governance Bill for scrutiny in this Session. Investors and the public need access to truthful reporting from our most important businesses on their finances and related issues. My Department continues to progress that important work, and a timetable for the publication of the Bill will be confirmed in the usual way for draft legislation in due course.
Wera Hobhouse (Bath) (LD)
Since leaving the European Union, we have been diverging progressively and passively —not making an active decision to diverge because it is good for us, but because we cannot keep up with the number of regulations coming through the European Union. That has been particularly disadvantageous for energy trading. What conversations has the Minister had with Government colleagues around aligning with the EU on emissions trading?
Justin Madders
That is an important question. The Minister with responsibility for emissions trading, my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon West (Sarah Jones), is in charge of that matter, and it is one of the discussions we are having as part of the EU reset.
Dr Rupa Huq (Ealing Central and Acton) (Lab)
Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Gareth Thomas)
Working across Government, we are determined to revitalise our high streets and support the businesses on them. We are working with industry to create a fairer business rates system that protects the high street and supports investment. We have introduced the Crime and Policing Bill, which will give better protection for businesses and retail workers against assault and theft. Our forthcoming small business strategy will set out our plan for further support for small businesses on the high street and beyond.
Dr Huq
From 5 am to 10 pm daily, the Patels’ newsagent, off licence and post office was an Acton staple—until Horizon slapped it with a £123,000 demand, and Mrs Patel had a series of mini-strokes. Will Ministers look into the fact that their compensation was rejected because Mr Patel was the postmaster, and show their love for high-street heroes everywhere by attending a tea organised by the all-party parliamentary group for ethnic minority business owners on 3 April? You are welcome too, Mr Speaker.
Gareth Thomas
I am grateful for my hon. Friend for raising the case of the Patels. I am keen that any sub-postmaster who was a victim of the Horizon scandal gets access to the compensation they rightly deserve as quickly as possible. She will understand that I cannot comment on individual cases, but if she wants to write to me about the specific case, I would be happy to look into it further and to discuss it with her.
Bradley Thomas
There are over 70 pubs across Bromsgrove and the villages. One of them—the Queens Head—faces a staggering £42,000 annual increase in the cost of business rates and national insurance contributions as a result of choices made by this Government. That is on top of increasing concerns around a banter ban. Will the Minister confirm that nobody will be ejected from a pub or hospitality venue for sharing a joke, and will he outline what steps he is taking to support pubs, rather than putting them out of business?
Gareth Thomas
I note in passing that 10,000 pubs closed their doors under the Conservative Government, so I do not think the pub industry is looking to the hon. Gentleman’s party for guidance going forward. On the specifics he asked about, he will be aware of our plan for business rates reform, which will help and make a significant difference to many pubs. On the so-called “banter ban”, I gently suggest that he should not believe everything that he reads in the newspapers.
Sally Jameson (Doncaster Central) (Lab/Co-op)
Pubs and restaurants are part of a thriving high street in Doncaster that is known for its iconic nightlife. Will the Minister set out what action the Department is taking to support hospitality and ensure that high streets continue to thrive, and may I invite him to Doncaster to see how nightlife is done properly?
Gareth Thomas
I will give careful consideration to my hon. Friend’s very generous offer. In answer to the hon. Member for Bromsgrove (Bradley Thomas) I mentioned business rates reform, which could make a significant difference for many businesses in the night-time economy. Another crucial issue that we want to tackle is the rising crime and antisocial behaviour on our high streets. As she will know, the Crime and Policing Bill, which is beginning its journey through Parliament, will make a significant difference in that regard.
Sir Roger Gale (Herne Bay and Sandwich) (Con)
The high street trader John Lewis Partnership is announcing its annual results today. It is a highly successful business but this year it will not be paying a dividend to its partners, the workforce, because it has to absorb national insurance costs. Does the Minister understand the real impact that NI contributions are having on what his party likes to describe as “ordinary working people”?
Gareth Thomas
I say gently to the right hon. Gentleman and his Conservative colleagues that we had to take the difficult decisions in the Budget to increase employer national insurance contributions because of the mess that their party left the country in. The shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade, the hon. Member for Arundel and South Downs (Andrew Griffith), helped to write the Liz Truss Budget that did so much damage to our country—we are trying to sort out the mess. The shadow Secretary of State still has not apologised for his part in that fiasco. He should take the opportunity to do so during these questions.
Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)
Yesterday, the owner of the hugely popular Rumsey’s, which is celebrating 21 years on Wendover high street in my constituency, emailed me to say:
“We estimate the changes coming in April will add 15% to our staff costs that we simply don’t have. Therefore we have had to sadly make redundancies, put in a recruitment freeze and implement staff hour cuts to offset this.”
With real-world testimony like that replicated up and down the country, will the Minister finally acknowledge that an urgent change of course is needed to support high streets, scrap the employer NI rise, save jobs and protect communities?
Gareth Thomas
I gently say to the hon. Gentleman that it would be interesting to know whether he now regrets the enthusiastic support he gave the Liz Truss Budget, which did so much damage to our country’s public finances. Our Budget in October last year started the process of sorting out those situations. I looked with interest at his website recently, which has a “My plan” section. It is completely blank. Although that is probably better given that he so strongly supported the Liz Truss Budget—there is at least a bit of progress.
Greg Smith
Well, that was no answer to my question whatsoever. It is almost as if Labour Members have not realised that they are in charge and that it is their decisions that are having this impact. Let me tell the Minister something else that Rumsey’s reported to me:
“The reduction in business rate relief will leave me no choice but to raise prices simply to break even, further limiting growth and accessibility for customers.”
I just do not know how much more the Minister needs to hear to understand the scale of the problem on our high streets. He talks of business rates reform, but the only business rate change we have seen is the devastating cut to business rates relief, which is hurting high streets now. Will he reverse it?
Gareth Thomas
Had the hon. Gentleman’s party been elected, retail, hospitality and leisure relief would have come to an end. We have extended retail, hospitality and leisure relief. We have set out in the Budget our plans to permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality and leisure properties on the high street from 2026-27. We are taking measures to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour on the high street, which his party could have done more to tackle but chose not to. We are bringing in new legislation to end the immunity for crime on the high street where shoplifters steal goods worth £200 or less, and we are creating a specific offence of violence against retail workers to try to make it easier for businesses operating on the high street.
Kenneth Stevenson (Airdrie and Shotts) (Lab)
Luke Akehurst (North Durham) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Jonathan Reynolds)
More than 3 million workers are expected to receive a pay rise due to increases to the national minimum wage in April, protecting the lowest paid in society. After our changes to the remit, we accepted in full the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission, which considers the impact of rates on business, competitiveness, the labour market, the wider economy and the cost of living. Our impact assessments are available only by region—estimates by constituency are not available—but the simple truth is that workers in every constituency are better off under this Labour Government.
Kenneth Stevenson
I thank the Secretary of State for that answer. Just yesterday, Parliament approved Labour’s new deal for working people—the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation. This will see a pay rise for more than 200,000 working Scots, many in the Airdrie and Shotts constituency, and a marked improvement to terms and conditions, which will be beneficial to our young workforce. Does he agree that with a Government committed to improving the pay, terms and conditions of workers across the country, the working people of Airdrie and Shotts will always get a better deal with Labour?
Jonathan Reynolds
The plan to make work pay is a core part of our mission to grow the economy, raise living standards and create opportunities for all, and there will be significant benefits for workers in insecure and low-paid jobs in central Scotland, including in Airdrie and Shotts. This plan is about making people stay in work. It is about making work more secure and more family-friendly, improving living standards and putting more money in workers’ pockets, but it is also about showing that politics can work for people who may have given up on this place as somewhere that can improve their living standards, their lives and those of their families. For that, I am very proud of this Government.
Luke Akehurst
The 6.7% increase in the national living wage in April clearly shows that this Labour Government are on the side of working people in North Durham and across the country and are making work pay. Can the Minister tell me how many families in north-east England will benefit from the increase in the national living wage and national minimum wage next month?
Jonathan Reynolds
I thank my hon. Friend for his support. Around 140,000 workers in north-east England will feel the benefits of this direct pay rise. I know his North Durham constituency well—I am no stranger to Chester-le-Street—and not only will his constituents get a pay rise, but his local shops, his restaurants, his pubs and more will get what they need most of all: customers who have got a bit of money to spend.
John Lamont (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con)
Last Friday, I spent the day visiting local shopkeepers in Kelso, many of whom employ their staff on the national minimum wage and the national living wage. Their biggest pressure just now is dealing with this Labour Government’s national insurance hike. They are facing a very difficult choice about whether they continue to employ people. What is the message from the Minister to those hard-working local shopkeepers?
Jonathan Reynolds
The thing I would cite most of all to the hon. Member’s constituents is the doubling of the employment allowance in the Budget and the threshold being removed, which means that some smaller businesses will actually be paying lower national insurance contributions than they would have paid before the Budget. However, I never shy away from the fact that the choices we had to make in the Budget were out of necessity, due to the black hole that was left behind. I am yet to hear any offer from Conservative Members as to how they would fill it.
At these questions, we will talk about tripling compensation for victims of the Post Office Horizon scandal only because the money is there. It was not there under the Conservative party. We will talk about money for the steel industry, standing behind that industry. Again, money was promised but not delivered. If promises are made, the resources to do those things have to be there. They were not there under the Conservative party. They are under Labour.
Robbie Moore (Keighley and Ilkley) (Con)
Whether it be the increase in the minimum wage, the increase in employer national insurance, the increase in business rates, or indeed the changes made to the Employment Rights Bill, all of these measures collectively are negatively penalising many businesses across my constituency, whether in Keighley, Ilkley or further afield. As a result, redundancies are having to be made, or the price of products and services are having to increase, and these businesses cannot absorb the additional increase that this Labour Government are putting on them. Did the Government undertake any economic impact assessment of what all of these measures collectively would have on hard-working businesses across my constituency?
Jonathan Reynolds
As I have said to Conservative Members before, of course we are very sensitive to the aggregate impact of Government policy, because, frankly, having observed the Conservative Governments of the previous 14 years, I thought they completely missed this point and at many times had different Departments doing completely opposing things.
I want to say something specific on business rates. No business rates relief was planned had the Conservative party won the election. The reduction to 40% was an increase in what was in the national accounts—again, short-term decisions for short-term, partisan, political benefit; no serious plan for the future.
The hon. Gentleman will have seen the figures from the Insolvency Service this week, which are very interesting. They show that fewer people have been made redundant over the past 12 months than in the year before, so I am afraid that the doom-mongers of the Conservative party have been proved absolutely wrong by the statistics that we have.
Tony Vaughan (Folkestone and Hythe) (Lab)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)
The Government are committed to supporting microbusinesses to comply with the general product safety regulation. For Northern Ireland, we have published additional guidance for businesses, and we will publish an update in the coming weeks, in the light of feedback we have received. We will continue to engage with businesses to ensure that they can trade freely across the UK. Businesses targeting the EU market may use the Government’s export support service. Since October 2024, the Department’s export academy has delivered eight free online GPSR training sessions to almost 5,000 attendees.
Tony Vaughan
I thank the Minister for his answer. My constituent George Stevens runs a microbusiness in Lydd making handcrafted stringed instruments; it has been running for over 30 years and he has many EU customers. He is deeply worried about Brexit-related red tape, which is holding back his EU exports. Can the Minister give him an assurance that, as a result of the proposed measures, he will now find it easier to trade with the EU?
Justin Madders
Microbusinesses such as that of Mr Stevens are central to the Government’s growth mission. We are committed to strengthening our relationship with the EU and to tackle trade barriers and frictions, and we regularly engage directly with businesses and their representative organisations to understand the difficulties they face. Our export support services help small and medium-sized enterprises navigate opportunities in EU markets and get the practical help they need to do so. For example, the Unlock Europe programme, which was launched in December as part of the export academy, offers practical guidance to help UK businesses enhance their exporting potential to the EU.
Charlie Maynard (Witney) (LD)
Our country’s very high electricity costs are another huge problem facing businesses in my constituency and nationally. Reintegrating our power markets with Europe’s through the single-day ahead coupling system would cost our country nothing, save costs for businesses, reduce carbon dioxide and make our power markets more efficient. Will the Minister take fast steps to reintegrate our electricity markets with those of our European neighbours?
Justin Madders
I thank the hon. Member for his tangential question relating to GPSR. He makes an important point about energy costs, and we are working closely with the EU on how to build on that, and of course the industrial strategy will also be looking very closely at how energy costs can be brought down for businesses.
Katie Lam (Weald of Kent) (Con)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)
The plan to make work pay is central to our plan for change, to grow the economy, raise living standards and create opportunities for all. It will tackle low pay, poor working conditions and job insecurity, creating long-term growth and investment to support businesses. Insights gained from our ongoing engagement with businesses will help us ensure proportionate and effective policy. Our plan to make work pay will ensure a level playing field, so that employers that are trying to do the right thing are not undercut.
Katie Lam
I sent a survey about how the Government have treated business to every registered company in the Weald of Kent, and they are terrified. Some 80% of them—four in five—are less likely to hire following soaring taxes and the truly dire Employment Rights Bill. The Regulatory Policy Committee found the Government’s own impact assessment for the Bill not fit for purpose. Will the Minister conduct a proper assessment of the damage the Bill will do, or should I send him mine?
Justin Madders
I am always grateful for advice. If the hon. Lady is conducting surveys, she might look at the one that said that 76 of her constituents supported the plans in the Bill to bring in day one rights for sick pay. The importance of this Bill cannot be overstated. We have a plan to bring businesses up to a standard where work is respected and people have security and dignity. If the hon. Lady cannot understand that, then she needs to get out a bit more.
Josh Newbury (Cannock Chase) (Lab)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)
The Government are committed to simplifying the process and law around trade union recognition so that working people have a more meaningful right to organise through trade unions—of course, I refer to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests in this respect. Through the Employment Rights Bill, we are reforming the process for statutory recognition applications; with existing thresholds presenting too high a hurdle in modern workplaces, they are increasingly fragmented. We are also taking steps to strengthen protections against unfair practices during the recognition process, which we debated at length yesterday.
Josh Newbury
In January, Bidfood, a food wholesaler and major employer in my constituency, announced overnight that it would derecognise the GMB and Unite the union, removing the ability of thousands of workers across the country to collectively bargain through their trade unions. The unions fear that Bidfood workers could now be left at risk of fire and rehire before protections in this Government’s Employment Rights Bill come into force. Does the Minister agree that employers should not be trying to dodge protections under the Government’s plan to make work pay, and will he join me in supporting the GMB and Unite as they seek to protect their workers at Bidfood?
Justin Madders
My hon. Friend will understand that I cannot comment on individual cases, but I am deeply troubled by what he has said. I can be clear that the Government are determined to reset industrial relations, so that employers and trade unions work together in partnership rather than in conflict, as we have heard. We encourage all employers to engage with unions in the spirit of co-operation and collaboration. Working in that way benefits employers and workers alike. As he knows, the Employment Rights Bill will end the unscrupulous practice of fire and rehire, which has no place in a modern economy and workplace, so if any company is thinking of doing that, it should think again.
Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)
I very much welcome the Minister’s response. After I worked in my mum and dad’s shop, I joined the firm Henry Denny and I was required to join the union. I was not sure about joining, but when I did so I found out that the union backed me as a worker against the employers whenever they were bringing in things that were wrong. So I encourage everybody who joins a workforce to join a union, because it will protect them whenever they need help.
Justin Madders
The hon. Member could not have put it better. He has explained the benefits of trade union membership, which is something that Members on the Conservative Benches clearly do not understand.
David Reed (Exmouth and Exeter East) (Con)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Gareth Thomas)
We are creating a fairer business rates system, reducing alcohol duty on qualifying draught products, and our forthcoming small business strategy will set out our plan to further support small businesses on the high street and beyond. In addition, through the Hospitality Sector Council, we are addressing, with business, strategic issues related to high street regeneration, skills, sustainability and productivity, and we have recently saved the pint.
Sir Edward Leigh
Obviously the Minister is working very hard, but he looks a bit tired, so may I offer him some Lincolnshire hospitality? Will he come and stay for a glorious weekend in one of our farm cottages, to enjoy our great skies and bracing air, and help our distressed farmers? Frankly, they need the income. The problem is that the Government have abolished the furnished holiday letting scheme, which was a tremendous encouragement for the countryside. I do not expect an answer now, but will he consider approaching his right hon. Friend the Chancellor to see if we can reinstate that in the Budget, to help our farmers and the countryside?
Gareth Thomas
Unusually for the Conservative party, the right hon. Gentleman has made an extremely generous offer. I am almost as tempted by that as by the offer from my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster Central (Sally Jameson) to visit Doncaster. I am happy to look at the issue he raises and I will write to him with more details.
David Reed
The Crusty Cob bakery has been a constant in east Devon for the past 55 years, but last week the family-run business closed the doors on all nine of its shops, making over 100 local people redundant. The owners stated a panoply of issues, from manufacturing costs to reduced high street footfall and energy prices, but the kicker is the decision that this Business Secretary’s party has made to slam companies with increases to the national living wage and employer national insurance contributions. The effects of this Labour Government’s decisions are setting in and literally destroying working family businesses. Will the Business Secretary and the Minister please give a message to the Crusty Cob team who have just lost their jobs?
Gareth Thomas
I understand that this will be an extremely worrying time for employees of the Crusty Cob and their families. I gently say to the hon. Gentleman that we are offering a 40% discount to retail, hospitality and leisure properties as part of our business rates package. We are going to reform business rates more substantially, with a permanently lower multiplier in 2026 that, while it clearly will not help the Crusty Cob and its employees, will help other businesses on the high street.
I am slightly surprised that the hon. Gentleman should be so opposed to an increase in the living wage—I do not know whether that is his party’s policy. I also gently remind him of the data from the Office for National Statistics, which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State pointed out, showing more people in jobs this year compared with last year.
David Davis (Goole and Pocklington) (Con)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Gareth Thomas)
In the past eight months we have trebled the total amount of compensation paid and ensured that more than 2,300 victims who had as yet received nothing have now had some financial redress. We are making up-front, fixed-sum offers and interim payments where possible to speed up the delivery of redress. There is still a lot more to do, though, and we remain committed to ensuring swift and fair redress for every postmaster affected by the Horizon scandal.
David Davis
I thank the Minister for that answer. He and I will agree that the Post Office Horizon scandal is one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in modern times, but the problems with the Post Office and its injustice extend far beyond that. Some 21 cases relating to the precursor system, Capture, which bear the same hallmarks as those in the Horizon scandal, have been referred to the Criminal Cases Review Commission. I am afraid that the CCRC is famous for taking years to come to obvious decisions, so can the Minister tell me that it will deal with this in months? If not, will his Department intervene directly?
Gareth Thomas
The right hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to raise the issue of Capture. As he will know, we have published our response to the independent Kroll report on the Capture software issue and the way in which the Post Office responded to the data that came out of it. We have been meeting sub-postmasters who used the Capture system and who were the victims in that regard to talk through a redress scheme with them. We are also working closely with the Criminal Cases Review Commission and have made it clear to the Post Office that it must co-operate with requests from the CCRC so that we can speed up its deliberations on the 21 cases.
Harpreet Uppal (Huddersfield) (Lab)
I recently met a constituent who is a former postmaster affected by the Horizon scandal. He has applied for compensation but feels that the process is taking too long, with unreasonable asks. Given the legal ruling that postmasters should be afforded the benefit of the doubt, what steps is the Department taking to ensure that compensation claims are processed fairly and without delays that could further affect the victims?
Gareth Thomas
As my hon. Friend will know, we inherited a compensation process that was perceived by many sub-postmasters as being slow, legalistic and adversarial, so we have already taken a series of steps to try to speed things up, particularly in trying to get out more fixed-sum payments—for example, we are moving in more staff to support work on the compensation process. If she would like me to look in more detail at her constituency case, I am very happy to do so.
Dame Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)
The Business Secretary met recently in Japan with Fujitsu, which developed the Horizon system and has offered to contribute to the compensation for victims. Can the Minister tell the House how much the Secretary of State has asked it to contribute, so that taxpayers are not on the hook for £1 billion?
Gareth Thomas
The hon. Lady is right to reference the discussions that my right hon. Friend had with the chief executive officer of Fujitsu. That company has agreed to begin talks about its contribution to the costs of compensation. She will understand that we also need to wait for Sir Wyn Williams’ inquiry to conclude, and for his recommendations regarding compensation from Fujitsu to be heard and understood. I am sure she will also understand that I am not going to give a running commentary on the discussions with Fujitsu, but I welcome the fact that it has agreed to begin talks.
Alex Baker (Aldershot) (Lab)
Dr Allison Gardner (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Jonathan Reynolds)
Small businesses need a better deal—certainly better than the one they got from the last Government—and our small business strategy, which is due this year, is designed to do that. We have already provided more support through the British Business Bank; we have worked with the Federation of Small Businesses to take action on issues such as late payment and retail crime; and we have announced the creation of the new business growth service, which aims to transform business support services. Later today I will attend a small business summit in Sussex to progress those plans and meet small business leaders.
Alex Baker
Too many small and medium-sized defence businesses in my community struggle to access the banking and finance facilities they need, often on the basis of self-imposed ethical criteria. Will the Business Secretary join me in welcoming how many investors and financial institutions have responded to the campaign I am leading with my hon. Friend the Member for York Outer (Mr Charters) and 100 other Labour parliamentarians, calling on our banks and fund managers to broaden their approach to defence investment? Will he call on investors to take action so that we can defend our country, support Ukraine, and fire up our industrial base?
Jonathan Reynolds
I agree 100% with my hon. Friend and thank her very much for her question. She will know that my Department, alongside the Treasury and the Ministry of Defence, convened a roundtable in December to listen to these perspectives, and now all three Departments are working together to ensure that the problems she has articulated do not occur.
It is essential that the British people do not think that the substantial, significant and historic investments in defence that this Government are making come in some way at the expense of domestic prosperity. There is no prosperity without security, but we should also acknowledge the tremendous economic contribution made by our defence sector—there is not a foreign and domestic split in that regard. I thank my hon. Friend for her outstanding leadership in galvanising parliamentary support for that campaign, and I hope it will have unanimous agreement in every part of the House.
Dr Gardner
As the Secretary of State is aware, the ceramics industry, including in my constituency of Stoke-on-Trent South, is facing immense competition from imported counterfeit goods. Many of those goods contain false backstamps that mislead consumers and—as the GMB union has raised with me—threaten great British companies such as Dunoon, Duchess and many others. Will the Minister meet me again to discuss in more detail creating offences and tabling regulations to deal with imported counterfeit ceramic goods?
Jonathan Reynolds
My Department has a very strong relationship with the ceramics sector through the Energy Intensive Users Group. We have regular meetings with that group, and I would also like to mention the British Ceramic Confederation and our old friend Rob Flello, who is a strong voice for the sector. There are many challenges for the ceramics sector, not least decarbonisation, but on the subject of consumer protection, it is firmly against UK consumer law for firms—wherever they are located—to give consumers false information, such as through fake product markings. We have strengthened the regime in this regard, with new enforcement powers for the Competition and Markets Authority coming into force next month, but I will of course get my hon. Friend any meeting she requires.
Mr Gagan Mohindra (South West Hertfordshire) (Con)
A constituent in Chorleywood recently contacted me after needing an emergency locksmith due to a broken key. Initially quoted £40 over the phone, she was later charged £1,460, and was only given the new key after making that payment. While I applaud this Government’s ambition to reduce regulation, can we ensure that there is appropriate regulation so that consumers are not unfairly overcharged, as in this instance?
Jonathan Reynolds
I, too, have heard the kinds of stories that the hon. Gentleman has articulated—there are definitely concerns in that regard. Broadly, the Government’s regulation agenda is not necessarily about deregulation, but about effective and proportionate regulation. I feel that our regulatory sector has grown a lot in recent years, and that it does not always compare well to those of other countries in terms of timeliness and business response. That is the agenda we are pursuing, but I will certainly write to the hon. Gentleman about the issues he has raised, which are very relevant. I appreciate the opportunity to do so and thank him for raising them today.
Alison Bennett (Mid Sussex) (LD)
Many families are supported by the work of my constituents, Alison and Kevin, who run a small care business. They tell me that they already operate on tight margins in a sector under huge pressure. The hike in employer national insurance contributions will force them to make tough decisions on staffing and simply reduce the amount of care they can offer. Kevin and Alison rightly say that this hike makes no sense at a time when the Government tell us that they want to move to community care provision and get people out of hospitals. Does the Secretary of State not agree?
Jonathan Reynolds
I thank the hon. Member for her question, and I thank Alison and Kevin for their important work. We already talked about the difficult choices that the Government faced and the unenviable choices that had to be made. Health and social care was a beneficiary of the additional revenue that needed to be raised to meet some of the challenges we face, but we are not casual about the impact of that, and we recognise the pressures that come from that. I would say that I do not agree. Taxes have to apply to every sector, and we cannot carve out certain sectors. However, I appreciate the pressures that she articulates. That is why the rest of the Government’s agenda is set to address all those factors.
Clive Jones (Wokingham) (LD)
Small businesses are the backbone of the British economy. Up and down the country, we have success stories of innovative start-ups and family-run businesses that should be part of the Government’s plan to get Britain growing again. Under the Conservatives, the number of small businesses in my constituency decreased by 360 between 2021 and 2024. The Tories messed up our national and local economy. Is the Minister concerned that his Government’s national insurance rises will damage the economy, just as the Conservatives did?
Jonathan Reynolds
If we were listing the difficult things that small businesses had to deal with in the previous 14 years, we would be here for most of the day and the weekend, if we are being honest. Whether it is how the Conservatives handled Brexit, the mini-Budget or austerity, we could go on and on. I say to the hon. Member that we are not casual about what we have had to ask of business because of the unenviable situation we inherited, but the fundamentals of the UK are incredibly strong in political stability and openness to the world, and we have the changes we are making to planning, skills, regulation and energy to make sure we are delivering.
Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney and Shetland) (LD)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Gareth Thomas)
The Treasury published a tax information and impact note in November 2024, alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the employer national insurance contribution changes. It sets out the impact of the policy on the Exchequer and the impacts on business, and that approach is consistent with previous tax changes.
Mr Carmichael
The impact I hear from SMEs in my constituency, predominantly in the visitor economy, is that they are anticipating cutting the hours of part-time staff or laying them off and reducing the number of seasonal employees that they will take on. Will the Minister take those concerns seriously and work with Ministers in the Scottish Government to ensure that the legitimate concerns of SMEs in my constituency do not blossom into a full blown crisis of confidence?
Gareth Thomas
I am always happy to work with the Scottish Government and other devolved Governments on how we can improve the business environment. I am sure the right hon. Member will join me in encouraging the Government in Scotland to mirror the changes we have made to business rates relief. Given the sizeable increase in the Scottish budget, it is somewhat surprising that the SNP has not been willing to support the retail sector through an extension of retail hospitality relief.
Frank McNally (Coatbridge and Bellshill) (Lab)
The Minister for Trade Policy and Economic Security (Mr Douglas Alexander)
The Government are committed to supporting investment in Scotland in line with our growth mission. The Prime Minister recently announced that the National Wealth Fund will provide £200 million of investment in new opportunities in Grangemouth in particular. That announcement came alongside the recently announced £55 million grant for the Port of Cromarty Firth, the two investment zones receiving £80 million over the next five years and our expanded Office for Investment.
Frank McNally
I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for that answer. The National Wealth Fund has recently invested £43.5 million in Pulpex Ltd to construct a sustainable packaging facility near Glasgow, which is a welcome move and will support jobs and growth. What further measures are planned to attract similar green industry investments in communities such as my own in North Lanarkshire, which has Scotland’s fastest-growing economy?
Mr Alexander
My hon. Friend is a tireless advocate for the communities of Coatbridge and Bellshill. I can assure him that the National Wealth Fund’s strategic partnerships trial will see each local authority within the Glasgow city region, including North Lanarkshire, being invited to submit project proposals, including for projects focused on, I hesitate to say, green jobs in Coatbridge.
Joy Morrissey (Beaconsfield) (Con)
The Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Jonathan Reynolds)
My Department works night and day to deliver our plan for change by making Britain the best place to invest, work and do business. This Government have provided political stability and openness to the world, and we are continually improving the business environment.
Since the last Business and Trade questions, we have published a new steer for the Competition and Markets Authority so that it has growth and investment in mind, and more pro-business regulatory reforms will follow. In Delhi last month, I relaunched our trade negotiations with India, and I have just returned from Tokyo, where the Foreign Secretary and I announced a first-of-its-kind industrial strategy partnership with Japan. We are also ensuring that our “make work pay” reforms deliver for businesses and workers.
Finally, we have engaged closely with the new US Administration, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and the new US trade representative, Jamieson Greer. The new US trade policy is challenging, but we believe that our decision to engage and seek potential agreement on a new economic deal between the UK and the US offers us an opportunity to ensure that the UK is the best-connected market in the world.
Joy Morrissey
Businesses across Beaconsfield, Marlow and the south Bucks villages are facing crippling costs from the Government’s national insurance tax raid and the Employment Rights Bill. Can the Secretary of State reassure or advise my businesses? Should they stop hiring, cut staff, increase prices, or all of the above?
Jonathan Reynolds
I would say that businesses in the hon. Lady’s constituency should contact their local Conservative MP and say, “What was your plan?” because I think we have had three oral question sessions where this has broadly been the only thing that the Conservatives have to say. I genuinely want to know: what was the plan to pay for Post Office compensation? What was the plan to pay for the steel industry? When the Conservatives commissioned the public sector pay bodies with the remit that they were given, got the findings back, hid them and did not tell the British people during the general election campaign, what was the plan? How would they have reconciled that? The small business leaders, and businesses of every size, in the hon. Lady’s constituency know how to make difficult decisions. What—
Mr Speaker
Order. Look, this is getting ridiculous. We are on topicals, and that is the worst example I have seen of an answer to a topical.
Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)
The Minister for Industry (Sarah Jones)
I saw many incredible businesses when I went to the Exeter business park last year. When I was in Saudi Arabia in January, I was with a range of businesses that were promoting investment, including many from the south-west. There is more that we can do, but there are some brilliant people there who are doing brilliant things. I think we can go further, and I am certainly very happy to work with my hon. Friend on that.
Andrew Griffith (Arundel and South Downs) (Con)
How have we got to this point? After 35 weeks as Trade Secretary, 18 weeks since the US election, and an entire month since steel and aluminium tariffs were first announced, the Secretary of State is only now going to sit down with the Secretary of Commerce of our closest ally. While he has been correcting his CV, steelworkers and businesses are hurting today. This is a colossal failure of trade policy on his watch. Why has it taken so long, and when can we expect an agreement?
Jonathan Reynolds
The hon. Gentleman may have not seen the news recently, but the UK, led by our Prime Minister, has had the best engagement of any country with the new US Administration. Is it not good to see again a British Prime Minister who is respected on the world stage and delivering for Britain? We have had tremendous engagement with the new US Administration, and I am looking forward to meeting them in person next week.
Andrew Griffith
Once again, no answers come there forth. Over 1 million jobs in this country depend on trade with the United States, including thousands of jobs in our steel industry. The Secretary of State does not know when he is going to get a deal. Will he publish his red lines for that deal, his objectives and what he hopes to achieve from meetings next week?
Jonathan Reynolds
On steel and aluminium tariffs, the US Administration’s position is that there are no exemptions for anybody—that is across the board. I think they recognise the very strong case that we have, but that is their position.
No, I will not publish my negotiating red lines before a negotiation. Frankly, that is the worst advice I have ever heard in the House of Commons. The Conservative party fell out with the EU, would not deal with China and could not do a deal with India. It fell out with the United Arab Emirates and could not do a deal with the Gulf. It got nothing out of the US. It did deals with Australia and New Zealand, then disowned them. We will take no lessons from the Conservatives.
Jo Platt (Leigh and Atherton) (Lab/Co-op)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Gareth Thomas)
My hon. Friend is a great champion of the social enterprise sector. She will know that we are committed to doubling the size of the co-op and mutuals sector. We recently met the recently launched mutuals and co-op business council to begin working with businesses on our plans to expand the co-op and mutuals sector. She may also be aware that our social enterprise boost fund is currently spending some £4 million on helping to support social enterprises that are already up and running.
Clive Jones (Wokingham) (LD)
If the Government have to push forward with retaliatory measures against the United States for its steel tariffs, they must strike at the political allies of the President to meaningfully move on the conversation. Can the Secretary of State confirm whether Elon Musk’s Tesla is being considered as a potential target for retaliatory measures?
Jonathan Reynolds
We reserve the right to take any action in response to any changes to our trading relationships, but I do think we can look to the opportunity for the UK, which is greater than for any other country, to get to an agreement that improves our terms of trade with the US. I reserve the right to take any action, but I think we can look forward in a positive way to improving that trading relationship, and that right now is my message and focus.
Mr Speaker
It was Chris Bloore’s turn. I am following the Order Paper, but I am going from side to side. Chris Law will come afterwards; he was not next.
Jonathan Reynolds
There are many Members called Chris.
I thank my hon. Friend for his question. As he will know, the creative industries are part of our industrial strategy. We are hugely proud of their soft power and economic impact, and of course we will get him the meeting he requests.
Mike Wood (Kingswinford and South Staffordshire) (Con)
Gareth Thomas
We have had one or two questions on this topic, and the hon. Member will therefore not be surprised by my answer. I gently point out that the difficult decisions we took on employer’s national insurance contributions in the Budget were a direct result of the mess the Conservative party, which he supported so enthusiastically, left for this Government.
Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Suffolk Coastal) (Lab)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)
I thank my hon. Friend for her question. The Groceries Code Adjudicator’s annual survey shows high levels of compliance by the supermarkets. However, a statutory review will actually commence next month, and I would encourage her and all stakeholders to contribute to it.
Chris Law (Dundee Central) (SNP)
Jonathan Reynolds
The simple position is that we will represent the UK’s national interest in this matter. The US has objections about its significant deficits in manufacturing goods with China and the EU, but that is not the relationship between the US and the UK, so there is a chance for the UK to pursue a different policy —one that produces greater benefits for every part of the UK than perhaps are available to other countries. Of course we are cognisant of the overall impact—no one wants to see this type of turmoil in the global economy—but our job is to deliver for the UK, and that is exactly what we are focused on doing.
Amanda Hack (North West Leicestershire) (Lab)
Gareth Thomas
We know that rural businesses want to see more investment in bus services and better transport infrastructure. My hon. Friend will appreciate that the Chancellor announced in the Budget some £650 million-plus in funding for local transport, which is designed to support everyday journeys and improve transport connections. I am sure, too, that she will welcome the better buses Bill, which is coming in to give local authorities—
Seamus Logan (Aberdeenshire North and Moray East) (SNP)
The Minister for Trade Policy and Economic Security (Mr Douglas Alexander)
I can assure the House that we are in regular touch with the Scotch Whisky Association. We fully appreciate the significance and importance of that industry not just to Scotland but to the UK. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State said, we are well served by a serious Prime Minister in these serious times, which affords us the opportunity for a dialogue in trade frankly not available to other countries.
Liam Byrne (Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North) (Lab)
President Trump’s new tariffs are double trouble for Britain’s steel and aluminium suppliers. They will dent £350 million of sales, but they also risk swamping the UK with over-subsidised Chinese steel diverted from America. What is the Secretary of State’s game plan now to redouble defences for our UK metal makers?
Jonathan Reynolds
I am incredibly grateful to the Chair of the Business and Trade Committee for that question. He is right to say that the challenge here is not just the direct trade we have with the US, but the impact of trade diversion. He knows we already have 16 anti-dumping, anti-subsidy measures in place against 14 separate product categories. Once the annual tariff-free quota is hit, a 25% tariff applies to those. I can tell him and the House today, though, that I will support UK Steel’s application to the Trade Remedies Authority for a review of the steel safeguards—we do have to think about what will be coming—and a new one for the aluminium sectors.
David Mundell (Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale) (Con)
I am sure that Ministers will join me in welcoming the £90 million investment by dairy firm Arla in the plant in my constituency, which will create up to 90 jobs. Does not that reinforce the fact that agriculture remains at the heart of the rural economy in constituencies such as mine? Should not the Government be supporting that industry, rather than trying to destroy it?
Mr Alexander
I can assure the House that we do welcome the investment of which the right hon. Gentleman speaks. Speaking on behalf of the constituency of East Lothian, I recognise fully the importance of the rural economy and agriculture’s contribution thereto. That is why we are in regular dialogue with the NFU and other key stakeholders.
Claire Hazelgrove (Filton and Bradley Stoke) (Lab)
Together with the Startup Coalition, I recently held a roundtable with brilliant local start-ups working out of Future Space at the University of the West of England. Issues that they have been facing for a long time include accessing the same opportunities and support for growth as larger businesses. Would the Minister please set out what support his Department will be providing so that our very smallest businesses can thrive too?
Gareth Thomas
One of the big issues that small businesses wanting to scale up face is access to finance. We are actively working across Government on what else we can do to support businesses to get access to the finance they need, including through the British Business Bank.
Ellie Chowns (North Herefordshire) (Green)
In my constituency, a planning moratorium has been in place for more than five years due to water pollution, with an estimated effect on the local construction industry of half a billion pounds, despite the fact that new house building is a minute proportion of the problem. Will the Secretary of State meet me and representatives of the Herefordshire construction industry to try to find a solution to this devastating problem?
Jonathan Reynolds
The frustration that comes across in the hon. Lady’s question relates to exactly the sort of problem the Government are fixing. I would be more than happy to work with her and any Secretary of State or Department necessary to unblock that for her.
Julia Buckley (Shrewsbury) (Lab)
Will the Minister outline what steps the Department is taking to help increase trade with the Asia Pacific, and in particular the Philippines, where a major local company in my constituency, Beaver Bridges, is hoping to expand and grow significantly, with the trade support of this Government?
Mr Douglas Alexander
I happen to be meeting the Philippine Government next week, although alas in London, not in Manila. The Department is working hard to agree a Government-to-Government financing framework partnership. That is just part of the work we have under way. If I can be of direct assistance to my hon. Friend and to her local business, I will of course be happy to speak to her.
Lauren Edwards (Rochester and Strood) (Lab)
The invest in women taskforce aims to drive investment in female-powered businesses at every stage. That includes putting more money in the hands of female investors, as we know that women back women. Does the Minister agree that one solution to tackling the gender disparity in investment decision-making roles is to set a minimum level of female representation for all investment committees that receive British Business Bank funding?
Justin Madders
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. There is a strong correlation between the proportion of women on an investment committee and the proportion of female founders receiving investment. My Department leads on the investing in women code, whose 270 signatories commit to supporting female entrepreneurship. One of the key metrics we check is the gender balance on investment committees and investment teams. I am pleased to say that the code signatories significantly outperform the wider market in their support for female founders. Investment funds backed by the British Business Bank are expected to sign up to the code and the bank itself is a signatory.
Sarah Jones
My hon. Friend asks a very good question. I am very pleased that the Department for Transport today launched the new UK bus manufacturing expert panel. We need to support our bus manufacturing, both for the transition to net zero and for building our businesses in the UK. I am very happy to work with him on that.