Asked by: James Heappey (Conservative - Wells)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what (a) fiscal and (b) economic conditions have to be met for defence spending to be raised to 2.5% of Gross Domestic Product.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The government’s aspiration is to invest 2.5% of GDP on defence, when the fiscal and economic circumstances allow. The Prime Minister has been clear that the target and path towards 2.5% will be set out at the next Spending Review.
The government has consistently prioritised defence spending. The Ministry of Defence was the first department to get certainty on its budgets in this Parliament. This settlement was the largest sustained spending increase in defence since the end of the Cold War, with a £24 billion uplift in cash terms over the four-year period. In March 2023, we also provided an extra £11 billion for defence and national security priorities over the next five years, with £4.95 billion over the next two years.
Asked by: James Heappey (Conservative - Wells)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps he is taking to support businesses.
Answered by David Gauke
The government is committed to supporting businesses.
To support investment and drive productivity, the corporation tax rate will be reduced to 19% in 2017 and 18% in 2020. This will give the UK the lowest rate of corporation tax in the G20 and will save businesses a total of £6.6 billion by 2021.
The permanent level of the Annual Investment Allowance will be increased from £25,000 to £200,000, its highest-ever permanent level.
In addition, over one million employers have benefitted from the Employment Allowance which was introduced in April 2014. It allows businesses and charities throughout the UK to deduct up to £2000 off their employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) bill each year, rising to £3000 from April next year.