Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of (a) business rates and (b) changes to employer national insurance contributions on the (i) hospitality sector and (ii) local pubs.

The Government is creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street, supports investment, and is fit for the 21st century.

From April 2026, we intend to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values (RVs) below £500,000.

This tax cut must be sustainably funded, and so we intend to introduce a higher rate on the most valuable properties from April 2026 - those with RVs of £500,000 and above. These represent less than one per cent of all properties, but cover the majority of large distribution warehouses, including those used by online giants.

The new business rates multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that the Government can take into account the upcoming revaluation outcomes as well as the economic and fiscal context. When the new multipliers are set, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis of the expected effects of the new RHL and higher multiplier arrangements.

Regarding National Insurance contributions (NICs), a Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the Exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.