Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation

Roger Gale Excerpts

Wednesday 28th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Peter Kyle (Hove and Portslade) (Lab)]

I notice that you are wearing a Sussex tie today, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is good to be called to speak by somebody wearing a Sussex tie. I am sure that you will be breaking the internet for another year running as a result—you have done so before.

It is a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for Central Devon (Sir Mel Stride), who was so recently forced to leave shadow Cabinet. There may well be another grouping of Members in the Chamber, alongside that of the Select Committee Chairs; it is very good to be able to speak today from the Back Benches.

The Chancellor’s Budget statement has made real, concrete progress in the areas of the economy that I care about the most and that have the most impact on the people who live and work around our country, including in my constituency. I was very animated by the areas of the speech that focused on growth and innovation, and those are what I will focus my contribution on today. The trading allowance, the entrepreneurship allowance, doubling funding for the British Business Bank, the entrepreneurship scheme for women, and, crucially, the founders’ relief are all measures that we should be extremely grateful for. They will have a direct impact on the growth of our economy, keep innovation here and allow it to scale here.

Founders are quite unique people. They are able to commercialise innovation and tell stories about their products, and they act with such confidence that their charisma carries a lot of weight, which sometimes belies the amount of risk they take on and their hard work and determination on behalf of their company, their employees and our economy as a whole. The relief that has been offered to them is hard-earned.

[Sir Roger Gale (Herne Bay and Sandwich) (Con)]

I think I am right in saying that the right hon. Gentleman’s constituency, like mine, relies very heavily on the tourist trade. That industry is on its knees gasping for air. It does not need breathing space; it needs help. There was nothing in the Budget for that industry.

[Peter Kyle]

I am always grateful to hear from the right hon. Gentleman, whose constituency is in the region that I also represent. He may not have heard amid the noise in the Chamber at the time, but the south-east benefited quite considerably. In our part of the country, 47% of businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will no longer pay any business rates at all.