Asked by: Baroness Taylor of Bolton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the estimated annual cost of the age-related exemption to the payment of National Insurance contributions.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) publishes the estimated annual cost of exempting individuals over State Pension age from paying National Insurance contributions (NICs) in the National Insurance contributions tab of the Structural Tax Reliefs publication. The estimated annual costs for employer NICs relief for apprentices under 25 and employees under 21 are published by HMRC in the NICs tab of the Non-Structural Tax Reliefs publication. These publications are both available online.
The figures for these three exemptions/reliefs are shown below:
Name | 2019 to 2020 | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 | 2022 to 2023 | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 |
Exemption for individuals over State Pension Age | 1,200 | 840 | 1,100 | 1,500* | 1,400* | 1,100* |
Relief on employer National Insurance contributions for apprentices under 25 | 190 | 190 | 230 | 290 | 320 | 340* |
Relief on employer National Insurance contributions for employees under 21 | 630 | 560 | 670 | 850 | 960 | 1,000* |
Note 1: Figures shown are in £ million.
Note 2: Figures marked with an asterisk (*) are provisional
Asked by: Baroness Taylor of Bolton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the age-related exemption for National Insurance contributions.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Employees and the self-employed make contributions that determine their level of State Pension until State Pension age. Payment of National Insurance contributions (NICs) builds an individual’s entitlement to claim contributory benefits which then replace earnings in certain circumstances, for example if someone is unable to work or is retired. After reaching State Pension age, the liability for employee and self-employed NICs no longer exists.
Employers are able to claim employer NICs reliefs including those for under-21s and under-25 apprentices. This means employers pay no employer NICs for apprentices under 25 or employees under 21 whose annual salaries are below £50,270.
The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process.
Asked by: Baroness Taylor of Bolton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the potential revenue of introducing a windfall tax on companies supplying (1) PPE, and (2) private COVID-19 tests.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
It is right that, as the economy rebounds, those best able to contribute share in the task of restoring the public finances to a sustainable footing.
That is why, at Budget, the Chancellor announced an increase in the Corporation Tax (CT) rate from 19 per cent to 25 per cent from 2023 onwards. This will, by definition, only apply to companies that are making profits, and profitable businesses have continued to pay CT throughout the pandemic.