Hospitality Industry: Northern Ireland

(asked on 14th November 2024) - View Source

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 13 November (HL2299), whether they will now answer the question put; namely, what assessment they made of the impact on jobs and profitability in the Northern Ireland hospitality sector of the announcements in the Budget of (1) the increase in the rate of employer national insurance contributions, and (2) the rise in the national minimum wage.


Answered by
Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent Portrait
Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
This question was answered on 26th November 2024

Northern Ireland has a thriving hospitality sector and this Government is committed to working with the NI Executive to support sustainable economic growth. The settlement for Northern Ireland in the Budget is the biggest real terms settlement since devolution.

To repair the £22bn black hole inherited by the Government and help raise the revenue required to increase funding for public services, the Government has taken the difficult decision to increase employer National Insurance. We recognise the need to protect the smallest employers which is why we have more than doubled the Employment Allowance to £10,500, meaning more than half of businesses with NICs liabilities either gain or see no change next year.

The Government has also been clear that we need to take difficult decisions to deliver long-term stability and growth. Stabilising the public finances is the only way to create long-term stability in which businesses can thrive.

The Government is adopting recommendations of the Low Pay Commission to increase the National Living Wage by 6.7% to £12.21 an hour, and increasing the National Minimum Wage for 18-20 year-olds by 16.3%. There are estimated to be almost 100,000 minimum wage workers in Northern Ireland in 2023.

The Government ask the independent and expert Low Pay Commission to monitor the effects of the National Living Wage.

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