Tax-free Shopping
Debate between Viscount Younger of Leckie and Lord Hannan of Kingsclere
Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con)
We do not have any plans to analyse this further. As I have said before, fewer than one in 10 non-EU visitors used the previous VAT-free shopping scheme, indicating that it is really not a pull factor for tourists. Canada and New Zealand also do not offer this type of tax-free shopping on the high street, and the USA does not have a countrywide system, yet all these countries are popular tourist destinations.
Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)
My Lords, the Treasury has a long history of downplaying the secondary effects of tax reductions. It has done it on corporation tax and the IR35. Oxford Economics tells us that 1.6 million visitors are attracted by VAT-free shopping. All those queues of people from China outside Harvey Nicks, Bicester Village and so on are bringing much- needed revenue to our economy. Will my noble friend the Minister ask his friends in the Treasury to reconsider the dynamic effects of this and other tax cuts?
Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con)
We have no plans to reconsider this. I know that about 80% of the effect of this is on retailers—for whom I have some sympathy, I should say—in London, and 10% in Bicester Village. It is very much focused on those areas and we do not have any plans to rethink it.
Trading Relations: USA, EU and China
Debate between Viscount Younger of Leckie and Lord Hannan of Kingsclere
Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con)
I do not believe that we are doing that. On the noble Lord’s points, I say that our free trade agreement negotiations with the US—it is, as we know, a very important market—are paused at the moment for reasons he will know. On the EU, we know that progress is being made. Obviously, some extremely difficult and sensitive negotiations are ongoing, but we are firmly of the belief that we will be able to resolve these.
Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)
My Lords, with all the talk about deficits and the mercantilist mood in the House, will my noble friend the Minister take this opportunity to remind the House that imports are a prize, not a concession, and bring prices down—especially for people on low incomes? As Adam Smith pointed out as long ago as 1776, there is no point in amassing great surpluses except in so far as they pay for imports. Would it not be a good thing if we cut some of our own tariffs unliterally to stimulate this process further and grow our economy?
Shipbuilding: Use of British Steel for Royal Navy
Debate between Viscount Younger of Leckie and Lord Hannan of Kingsclere
Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)
My Lords, a patriotic Government should want our armed services to have the best and aptest steel in the most economical way, so as to free up the rest of their budget for more kit and more materiel. Will my noble friend the Minister confirm that whether it is sourced from the UK, Germany, Turkey or the Netherlands, we will always endeavour to ensure that our service men and women get the best possible equipment?
Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con)
My noble friend makes a very good point. In October 2020 the ONS published a report on UK steel procurement across government. It showed that the reported proportion of steel procured within the UK for public projects was 77%, up from 40% in the previous year.