Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Barry Sheerman and Lucy Frazer

Thursday 9th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Frazer]

My right hon. Friend is absolutely right: this is an opportunity for everybody across all parts of the UK to take part. There will be the Coronation Big Lunch street parties and the Big Help Out, as well as screens out for people to enjoy what is a very important celebration on the day itself.

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

Will the Sports Minister come to Huddersfield to see what is going at Huddersfield Town AFC and Huddersfield Giants, in the teams and the stadium? Will the Secretary of State support my campaign to keep the National Rugby League Museum in or very close to the George Hotel, where it was founded?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Barry Sheerman and Lucy Frazer

Thursday 13th October 2022 Commons Chamber

[Lucy Frazer]

My right hon. Friend has made an important point, because, of course, transport crosses corridors. As she will know, transport in London is devolved to the Mayor of London, and the Government have agreed with Transport for London a £1.2 billion multi-year settlement to secure the long-term future of London’s transport network, including bus services. Where bus-tender routes operate across transport authority boundaries, we expect the local transport authorities involved to work closely with bus operators.

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

David Amess was a parliamentary mate. He was a proper parliamentarian. We miss him dreadfully. He would not like me to call him a mate, mind, but it is the truth.

Is the Minister aware that hydrogen-powered buses are widely available? I think there are already 16 on the streets of Belfast—I should have been speaking at a sustainability conference in Belfast today—but hydrogen-powered heavy goods vehicles and trucks, including waste trucks, are also available. When will local authorities have proper subsidies to enable them to get those hydrogen-powered buses and trucks on the road, now?

[Lucy Frazer]

The Government are absolutely committed to ensuring that we have a wide variety of energy sources for our transport system. The hon. Gentleman will know that only last week the Secretary of State announced £24 million for Teesside to expand its hydrogen works. I am aware of the hydrogen-powered buses; significant Government funds are available for them, for electric buses, and for various other mechanisms.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Barry Sheerman and Lucy Frazer

Tuesday 17th May 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

May I invite the Minister to come to Wakefield with me? I was there on Saturday morning. The people there have not read the Bloomberg report, but they can feel the impact of rising taxes and the cost of living. They know that they will be in desperate trouble in the coming months. Will she get real and bring the Chancellor to an area of good hard-working people who face the future with great fear?

[Lucy Frazer]

I thank the hon. Gentleman and am sure that I will soon make a visit to Wakefield. The Government understand the issue with the rise in the cost of living but over this year we have committed £22 billion to support people in their time of need. The people in Wakefield that the hon. Gentleman talks about will also benefit from the cuts we have made to taxes, such as the universal taper rate, a tax cut for 1.2 million people and an extra £1,000 in their pockets. We have increased the threshold to the NICs rate, a £6 billion tax cut for £30 million working people. As I said—[Interruption.]

Draft Social Security (Contributions) (Rates, Limits and Thresholds Amendments and National Insurance Funds Payments) Regulations 2022 Draft Tax Credits, Child Benefits and Guardians Allowance Up-rating Regulations 2022

Debate between Barry Sheerman and Lucy Frazer

Tuesday 22nd February 2022 General Committees

[Lucy Frazer]

These regulations set the national insurance contribution limits and thresholds as well as the rates of a number of national insurance contributions for the 2022-23 tax year, and make provision for a Treasury grant to be paid into the national insurance fund if required. As Members are aware, national insurance contributions or NICs are a key element of the nation’s welfare safety net, helping to support workers through ill health, unemployment and old age. They allow people to make contributions when they are in work in order to receive contributory benefits when they are not working. NICs receipts go towards funding contributory benefits as well as the NHS.

As announced at the Budget, the Government are using the September consumer prices index figure of 3.1% as the basis for setting all national insurance limits and thresholds and the rates of class 2 and 3 national insurance contributions for 2022-23. September CPI is the standard measure to increase NICs thresholds and class 2 and 3 rates. I will first outline the specific changes to the class 1 primary threshold and class 4 lower profits limit. The primary threshold and lower profits limit indicate the point at which employees and the self-employed start paying class 1 and class 4 NICs respectively. These thresholds will rise from £9,568 to £9,880 per year. The rates of class 1 and 4 NICs are unchanged by these regulations. The rates of class 1 and 4 NICs have already been increased, to 13.25% and 10.25% respectively, through the Health and Social Care Levy Act 2021. Increases to the primary threshold and lower profits limit do not impact on state pension eligibility. This is determined by the lower earnings limit for employees, which will increase, in line with CPI, from £6,240 in 2021-22 to £6,396 in 2022-23. I will come shortly to payment of class 2 NICs for the self-employed.

The upper earnings limit, the point at which the main rate of employee NICs drops to 3.25%, is aligned with the higher rate threshold for income tax. It was announced at spring Budget 2021 that the income tax higher rate threshold and the upper earnings limit would remain frozen at £50,270 until 2025-26. Similarly, the upper profits limit is the point at which the main rate for class 4 NICs drops to 3.25%. This will also remain at £50,270 per year.

As well as class 4 NICs, the self-employed pay class 2 NICs. The rate of class 2 NICs will increase from £3.05 in 2021-22 to £3.15 in 2022-23. The small profits threshold is the point above which the self-employed must pay class 2 NICs. This will increase from £6,515 in 2021-22 to £6,725 in 2022-23.

Class 3 NICs allow people to voluntarily top up their national insurance record. The rate for class 3 will increase, in line with inflation, from £15.40 a week in 2021-22 to £15.85 in 2022-23. The secondary threshold is the point at which employers start paying employer NICs on their employees’ salary. That threshold will increase from £8,840 in 2021-22 to £9,100 in 2022-23. The threshold at which employers of people under 21 and apprentices under 25 start to pay employer NICs on those employee salaries will remain frozen at £50,270 per year, to maintain alignment with the UEL.

The regulations also make provision for a Treasury grant of up to 17% of forecast annual benefit expenditure to be paid into the national insurance fund, if needed, during 2022-23. A similar provision will be made in respect of the Northern Ireland national insurance fund. A Government Actuary’s Department report laid alongside the re-rating regulations forecast that a Treasury grant will not be required in 2022-23, but in view of the economic challenges created by the covid pandemic, the Government consider it prudent to make the maximum provision at this stage. I trust that is a useful overview of the changes we are making to adjust contributions to the Exchequer in line with inflation.

On the second statutory instrument, the Government are committed to delivering a welfare system that is fair for claimants and taxpayers, while providing a strong safety net for those who need it most. The draft regulations will ensure tax credits, child benefit and guardian’s allowance increase in line with the consumer prices index, which measured inflation at 3.1% in the year to September 2021.

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

Some of us have not seen this statutory instrument. I was only given one when I came in. I did not realise there were two statutory instruments.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lucy Frazer]

In my introductory remarks, I set out how each threshold will be increased, but I am happy to set that out in writing to him. He also spoke about the steps we are taking to protect the most vulnerable. He will know that, last September, we put in place a support package of half a billion pounds to support the most vulnerable. He will have heard the Chancellor’s statement only last month about the steps we are taking in response to the energy price increases. He will also be aware of the £400 billion support provided by the Chancellor in the past two years.

The SIs before us are important to ensure that we continue to uprate the thresholds.

[Mr Sheerman]

I do not want to extend the debate to excession because I know that we are in a hurry on account of Divisions in the House, but a Government Minister—a colleague of the Minister—has just resigned from the Government because of the amount of fraud that has been allowed to happen in our country under the present Chancellor’s guidance. Indeed, it was his legislation. Will the Minister confirm that £3.4 billion was lost? What could we have done with that £3.4 billion to ameliorate the impact of the NIC increase?