Growing the UK Economy

Debate between Alan Gemmell and Darren Jones

Wednesday 29th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Darren Jones]

As the hon. Member will know, at the Budget, in our design of the national insurance contribution scheme for employers, we protected small businesses to ensure that over 50% of businesses will pay either the same as they did before or less than they did before in employer national insurance contributions. That is in addition to a permanent discount on business rates for retail businesses on the high street, many of whom will be small businesses of the nature he refers to in his question.

[Alan Gemmell (Central Ayrshire) (Lab)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that today’s announcement on Heathrow sends a serious signal to international investors, trading partners and Scottish exporters—for example, many tens of thousands of tonnes of Scottish salmon go through Heathrow every year—that the Government will choose growth? Does he agree that, unlike the Conservative party and the gloom and doom from the SNP, we will bring growth to the Scottish economy?

[Darren Jones]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. This is a Government who are willing to act in the interests of the UK economy. Investors around the world are taking note, as the Chancellor heard at Davos. They know that Britain is back, Britain wants to build and we are here to do business.