Tax Increases

Debate between Lord Hannan of Kingsclere and Lord Livermore

Thursday 10th July 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

My noble friend is right to point out the long-standing and long-term challenges that we face in fiscal policy. As the noble Lord opposite said, the OBR set out some long-standing economic realities in its fiscal risks report this week. That is why it is so important that we are committed to ensuring stability in the economy through our fiscal rules. My noble friend mentioned special educational needs. He is absolutely right that, right now, the system is not working; less than half of education, health and care plans are issued within the 20-week deadline and only 22% of children with special educational needs are reaching the expected levels in maths and English. We absolutely need to deliver better support for vulnerable children and their parents, which is why we will set out wider plans for SEND reform later this year as part of the upcoming schools White Paper. On the longer-term debate that my noble friend talks about, I am always more than happy to discuss those issues with him.

[Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)]

My Lords, does the Minister accept that there is a point when higher tax rates lead to lower government revenues? We heard an example from my noble friend Lord Leigh in the last Question that the Minister dealt with about non-doms provoking some companies to change their domicile or listing. There will come a point when it causes people to retire early, emigrate or work differently. If he accepts that there is such a point, how close does he think we have got to it?

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

The noble Lord is just talking about the revenue maximisation point. We are past that, for example, on tobacco taxes, as a deliberate government policy. Of course it exists; I do not think it is particularly novel.

Government Performance against Fiscal Rules

Debate between Lord Hannan of Kingsclere and Lord Livermore

Tuesday 8th July 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

Yes.

[Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)]

My Lords, in his first answer, the Minister used the phrase, “lost control of the economy”, which is familiar from the election. It is a very telling phrase. Which bits of the economy would he like to control that are not currently controlled? Is not the reality that the problem is losing control not of the economy but of the deficit? I have to ask: in what areas will the Government slow the increase in welfare spending? If they are not going to do PIP or child benefit, where is he going to find the savings?

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

My Lords, I will tell the noble Lord what matters in terms of controlling the public finances: economic growth, which his Government singularly failed on. Whether it was the Liz Truss mini-Budget, the Brexit deal that he supported and championed, or austerity at exactly the wrong moment for the economy, the previous Government’s record on economic growth was woeful.

Carbon Border Taxes

Debate between Lord Hannan of Kingsclere and Lord Livermore

Wednesday 12th March 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

Yes—I agree with the noble Baroness that energy prices are too high. I just wonder what the previous Government did to tackle that over 14 years. This Government have invested in CCUS, for example, which the previous Government did not. I do not know whether the noble Baroness agrees with our investments in that; she opposes the revenue-raising measures that we have taken to raise the funds to invest in those measures. It is an interesting question, but I of course agree with her. That is why the tax is designed in exactly the way that it is.

[Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)]

My Lords, to return to my noble friend Lord Fuller’s question, how is this different from a tariff? One effect of a tariff is that it results in the outsourcing of manufacturing. People will take car-making or whatever to places that are not affected by this additional levy. Have the Government made any assessment of how much deindustrialisation there will be as a consequence of imposing what is, in effect, a tariff on ourselves?

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

As I understand it, the noble Lord likes market-led approaches. The UK Emissions Trading Scheme is a market-led approach whereby those domestic firms and industries that are able to decarbonise quickly do so first, while technological solutions are found for those where it is more difficult. To maintain the integrity of the UK’s decarbonisation efforts through the emissions trading scheme, we must mitigate the risk of carbon leakage, which means that we must have a carbon border adjustment mechanism.

London Stock Exchange: Decline in UK Funds

Debate between Lord Hannan of Kingsclere and Lord Livermore

Thursday 13th February 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

The decision on whether a firm can list in the UK is a matter for the independent regulator, the FCA, subject to a firm meeting its listing rules and relevant disclosure requirements.

[Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)]

My Lords, the chief beneficiary of the loss of business from London has been New York, where companies are not subject to stamp duty. Is the Minister’s department prepared to consider lifting this handicap from the London Stock Exchange to give us more of an equal chance?

[Lord Livermore (Lab)]

Stamp taxes on shares raise more than £4 billion a year in revenue. Targeted design features such as the exemption for transfers made on growth markets also support the UK’s competitiveness. This matter is out of scope of the pensions review, but we of course keep all taxes under review.