Income tax (charge)
Debate between James Murray and Mims Davies(3 weeks ago)
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The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (James Murray)
I thank my right hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton South East (Pat McFadden) for opening today’s debate, and for so clearly reminding us of the state in which the Conservatives left our country.
As many Members have rightly made clear today, yesterday’s Budget made choices about the future of our country. They were not just choices to get through the next few months until the next fiscal event, as we got used to under the last Government, but choices—sometimes difficult ones—about the long-term future of the UK economy and the public finances. The Chancellor’s Budget honoured our manifesto commitments by restoring economic stability, fixing the public finances and boosting long-term, sustainable investment in our country. The first Budget of this new Government turned the page on the last 14 years of chaos and decline. This Budget is a generational event to fix the foundations, so that we can deliver the change that the people of this country voted for. It begins to address the urgent pressures that our NHS, our schools, our police and our borders are under.
However, this Budget is not just about the coming year, nor even the whole of this Parliament; it is about making the right long-term decisions to create opportunities for people throughout the country, put more money in people’s pockets and begin a decade of national renewal.
Mims Davies
I thank the Minister for giving way; he is very generous. He has mentioned choices. Could he comment on the fact that the cost of borrowing is soaring after this tax-raising Labour Budget of broken promises? Labour Members have talked about a crashed economy, but now the Government are presiding over their own low-growth, slow-growth car crash, and they are living in denial themselves.
VAT: Independent Schools
Debate between James Murray and Mims Davies(1 month, 2 weeks ago)
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James Murray
As I was saying to the right hon. Member for Witham, the Government will publish a tax information and impact note on the VAT policy change at the Budget, once the independent Office for Budget Responsibility has scrutinised and certified the costing of the final policy.
James Murray
I am still replying to the hon. Member’s right hon. Friend. [Interruption.] Maybe Conservative Members could sort this out on their side of the House before they come into the Chamber, but I will continue replying to the right hon. Member for Witham.
Turning to the legal cases, the Government have considered the policy’s interaction with human rights law and are confident that it is compatible with the UK’s obligations under the Human Rights Act. I hope that addresses the right hon. Member’s concerns.
Mims Davies
I thank the Minister for kindly giving way. This policy will have an economic impact in each and every constituency: on librarians, on maintenance people and on those who work in labs, in catering and as minibus drivers—everything that is predicated on schools such as the ones we are discussing. Will the impact assessment and the Treasury look at the wider implications for employment?
James Murray
As the hon. Member knows, there are established processes for developing tax information and impact notes. This one will be developed in line with the OBR costing in the normal way and published alongside the Budget, so she will see all the information.