Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had discussions with (a) Cabinet colleagues and (b) the Licensed Private Hire Car Association on the potential impact of the National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill on future provision of home-to-school transport for children with special educational needs beyond March 2025.

Departmental officials engage regularly with local authorities to understand the challenges they face and will continue to monitor this situation. We do not expect there to be a significant impact on home-to-school travel for children with special educational needs and disabilities. Local authorities are responsible for arranging home-to-school travel and deliver this through a range of in-house services and external providers. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has not met with the Licensed Private Hire Car Association on this topic.

The government has more than doubled the Employment Allowance to £10,500 which means that more than half of businesses with National Insurance liabilities will either gain or see no change next year. Businesses will still be able to claim employer National Insurance contributions relief, where eligible.