National Insurance Contributions Bill

Guy Opperman Excerpts

Monday 4th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Gauke]

My right hon. Friend makes a very good observation. I can rarely remember so few Labour Members being present for the opening of a Second Reading debate. I was beginning to take it personally, but he has reassured me that this issue does not attract the interest of the Opposition. Labour is the party that intended to increase the jobs tax. Pretty much the only measure that they had for deficit reduction was to increase employers’ national insurance contributions, which was not a sensible approach at all.

We are not predicting how many jobs the Bill might create because a number of factors apply. It is interesting to note, however, that the Federation of Small Businesses believes that the measure is better than the one that it had advocated, which it anticipated would have created 45,000 new jobs. It has carried out a survey of its members and 28% of respondents believed that this measure would help them to increase the number of people they employ. That is a very encouraging step.

[Guy Opperman (Hexham) (Con)]

I accept entirely that the Minister cannot give specifics on the number of jobs the Bill will create, although quite evidently it will create jobs. Can he estimate how many employers he expects it to assist, particularly in the north-east?

[Mr Gauke]

That is a similar point, and, as I say, I am nervous about giving precise numbers. Of the FSB respondents, 28% believed that this would help them. We believe that we have to consider a range of measures, but clearly measures that reduce the cost of taking on staff must help in increasing employment. For example, the Bill would enable a business to take on four people on the national minimum wage and not pay any employers’ national insurance contributions at all. That will clearly help.