Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of payroll employment; what discussions his Department has had with businesses on hiring freezes and investment plans; and whether he plans to introduce additional support for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The government is committed to delivering an effective labour market that works for all. The number of payrolled employees remains near record highs, and the UK labour market remaining strong by international standards, with a higher employment rate than the EU, US and Canada.

The government is dedicated to supporting our small and medium-sized enterprises. The Government has already published our Plan for Small Businesses in July, setting out the measures that the government is taking to support small businesses across the UK.

UK businesses can also access our wide range of support via business.gov.uk.