Small Businesses: VAT Threshold

Lord Bellingham Excerpts

Thursday 5th March 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

In a previous answer, I discussed the issues surrounding changing the threshold. The noble Baroness may know that the Windsor Framework imposes an upper limit of just over £90,000 on the threshold in Northern Ireland. The Windsor Framework is relevant by extension to the Government’s decisions in Great Britain too, so there are limitations to what we can do. She talked about the other decisions that the Government have taken, which she has consistently opposed—for example, raising the minimum wage. However, it is only because of these decisions that the Chancellor was able to tell Parliament, the day before yesterday, that living standards are now rising, having fallen under the previous Government, and that by the next election people will be £1,000 a year better off.

[Lord Bellingham (Con)]

My Lords, small businesses are the key driver for creating jobs and employment. Can the Minister confirm that unemployment is now 5.6%—higher than during the Covid pandemic—while youth unemployment is 15.9%? What is going wrong? The Minister spent 18 months blaming the £22 billion black hole and everyone from Liz Truss to Boris—he even blamed the Tories for repealing the corn laws. When will he take responsibility for what is going wrong?