Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Support for Small Businesses

Tuesday 19 March 2024 · 6 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 4 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Government extended the retail, hospitality and leisure relief in England, providing a tax cut worth 2.5 billion for small businesses.
  • One third of all properties in England already pay no business rates at all due to small business rate relief.
  • The Chancellor has announced plans to improve the situation for small businesses following meetings with the Federation of Small Businesses.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 James Davies Con
Taxation Wales Business & Trade
Context

The Welsh Government is reducing retail, hospitality and leisure business rates relief from 75% to 40%, affecting small businesses. The questioner seeks advice on how these businesses can cope with this change.

Question

What advice does the Minister have for small businesses in north Wales facing these onerous bills?

Answer from Gareth Davies

My hon. Friend is right that at the autumn statement, this Government extended the retail, hospitality and leisure relief in England—a tax cut worth £2.5 billion for small businesses. The Barnett formula applies to allow the Welsh Labour Government to offer similar relief if they want to. It is disappointing, if not surprising, that when given the opportunity, Labour decides not to cut taxes for working people.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Does not provide specific advice or support measures for small businesses in Wales facing reduced business rates relief.

How: Discussing Welsh Government'S Failure

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Q2 Paul Holmes Con Hamble Valley
Business & Trade
Context

The questioner seeks details on the progress made by the government in reducing business rates for small businesses.

Question

Will he outline to the House the progress the Government have made in this regard, which was desperately needed?

Answer from Gareth Davies

My hon. Friend is right. Business rate relief is a great way to support small businesses in Eastleigh and across the country. Our small business rate relief means that one third of all properties in England already pay no business rates at all. We have frozen the small business multiplier, protecting more than 1 million properties from a multiplier increase. As I was just saying, we are supporting high streets with our retail, hospitality and leisure relief.

Answered
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Q3 Flick Drummond Con
Economy Business & Trade
Context

The questioner met small businesses who expressed the need to raise the VAT threshold beyond £90,000 to encourage expansion.

Question

Has the Chancellor given any thought to increasing the threshold to improve productivity?

Answer from Gareth Davies

My hon. Friend is right to engage in the way that she is with her small businesses. We believe that the £90,000 threshold, which has just been increased, strikes the right balance between managing the public finances and supporting small businesses. I encourage her to look at the wider package of support that the Government are providing for small businesses, not least the business rate relief that I was just talking about.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Does not confirm if Chancellor has considered raising VAT threshold beyond £90,000.

How: Discussing Current Support Measures

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Q4 Gregory Campbell DUP East Londonderry
Northern Ireland Scotland Local Government
Context

The questioner requests that the government should engage with devolved institutions to reduce bureaucracy for small businesses.

Question

Will the Minister have discussions with his counterparts in the devolved institutions to ensure that the likes of sole traders and small businesses see a reduction in bureaucracy?

Answer from Gareth Davies

I can assure the hon. Gentleman that the Government engage frequently with our counterparts in the Northern Ireland Administration, and that will continue to be the case.

Answered
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Q5 Mike Amesbury Lab
Business & Trade
Context

Two in three small businesses are suffering from late payments, according to the Federation of Small Businesses.

Question

Why do the Government not follow Labour's lead and strengthen the law on this?

Answer from Gareth Davies

We are acutely aware of this issue, and I have had meetings with the FSB. That is why the Chancellor has announced plans to improve the situation for small businesses. I am happy to outline that in writing to the hon. Gentleman.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Does not explicitly state if government will follow Labour's lead or strengthen law against late payments.

How: Providing Written Response

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Q6 Alison Thewliss SNP
Taxation Business & Trade
Context

The questioner seeks to understand why a VAT cut for hairdressing businesses was not considered in the Budget.

Question

Can the Minister tell me why that was not considered in the Budget?

Answer from Gareth Davies

We of course support hairdressers, our high streets and women-run businesses, which is why we have extended the retail, hospitality and leisure relief to 75%. Cutting taxes for hard-working people is what the Conservative Government do.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Does not provide a reason or explanation for excluding hairdressing VAT cut from the Budget.

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