Oral Answers to Questions

Ranil Jayawardena Excerpts

Tuesday 14th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Laura Trott]

Nice try. The triple lock was a Conservative invention, delivered by the Conservatives, and it is something to which we remain committed.

[Mr Ranil Jayawardena (North East Hampshire) (Con)]

I welcome my hon. Friend to her new role. Given that it is right that we look after our pensioners and ensure that people are well looked after in later life, it is important that we have the right tax base to fund our pensions. Will she meet me to consider ways in which we can make our taxation system more family friendly, to encourage more people to have more children and to ensure that we can pay for our pensions in the years ahead?

[Laura Trott]

My right hon. Friend is a brilliant advocate on these issues, and of course I would be delighted to meet him.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jeremy Hunt]

I will not pre-empt what I am going to say next week, but I will say to the hon. Lady that, as a former Health Secretary, I am well aware of the pressures on NHS dentistry and its importance to all our constituents.

[Mr Ranil Jayawardena (North East Hampshire) (Con)]

Given that inheritance tax is the least popular of all taxes at every income decile and that scrapping it would not be inflationary, will my right hon. Friend consider doing so?

[Jeremy Hunt]

That was a very nice try, but my hon. Friend will have to wait for a week.