Economic Policy

Debate between Michael Ellis and George Osborne

Monday 25th February 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

We have revived the patient from the near-death experience it had under the Labour Government.

[Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that, as the Labour party has no economic policy of its own and no wish but to borrow more and more on the never-never, if the shadow Chancellor were in my right hon. Friend’s shoes, this country would be looking at default?

[Mr Osborne]

The great thing is that we, as a country, have experienced the shadow Chancellor’s economic policy, because he was the chief economic adviser to the Government. We had the biggest financial crisis in our history and the deepest recession for 100 years, and many people lost their jobs. We have had a dry run of what it would be like if he were ever allowed back.

Autumn Statement

Debate between Michael Ellis and George Osborne

Tuesday 29th November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

Well, the pay comes out of the health budget, and the official policy of the Labour party is not to increase health spending in real terms. [Interruption.] This is rubbish: that is the stated position of the shadow Health Secretary; that is what he says. On pay, I want to hear from the shadow Chancellor at some point this evening whether he supports a 1% average pay rise in the next few years, because then we will know whether the complaints that the hon. Gentleman has just made have any force.

[Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

I warmly welcome the Chancellor’s statement. Can he confirm that, despite the quack economics cited by those on the Opposition Front Bench, the chief economist of the OECD has said not only that we are on course, but that plan A is the right plan for this country?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Ellis and George Osborne

Tuesday 16th November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Michael Ellis (Northampton North) (Con)]

1. What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Office of Tax Simplification.

[The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr George Osborne)]

May I add my congratulations to the couple and say that we wish them every happiness? I am not sure that they will be particularly interested in this answer, but I hope that the House will be.

The Office of Tax Simplification was created by the coalition Government in July to reduce the complexity of a tax code that has doubled in size over the past decade. Last week, the office produced a comprehensive list of the 1,042 reliefs that now exist in the tax system. By the time of next year’s Budget, we will have received its advice on which reliefs can be simplified or abolished to be consistent with the Government’s wider objectives.

[Michael Ellis]

I congratulate my right hon. Friend on establishing the Office of Tax Simplification. He will be aware that the tax system in this country is labyrinthine in its complexity, and small businesses in my constituency of Northampton North have been adversely affected by it. Can my right hon. Friend assure me that the new Office of Tax Simplification will sort out this complexity sooner rather than later?

[Mr Osborne]

I can give my hon. Friend that assurance. A few months ago, he and I visited some small businesses in his constituency, many of which were suffering under the burden of a tax code that has grown from 4,900-odd pages in 1997 to 11,500 pages today. The Office of Tax Simplification is specifically looking at the taxation of small businesses as well as at the issue of tax reliefs. The small business report will be coming out later next year, but we will get an interim report in time for the Budget.