Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Living Standards

Tuesday 3 December 2024 · 5 questions

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

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Living standards are expected to increase at more than double the pace observed in the previous Parliament according to the Office for Budget Responsibility.
  • From 1 April 2025, the national living wage will increase by 6.7% to 12.21 per hour for eligible workers aged 21 and over.
  • The Scottish Government's spending review settlement for 2025-26 is the largest in real terms since devolution began.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Pamela Nash Lab Motherwell, Wishaw and Carluke
Economy Children & Families
Context

The MP is concerned about the need to improve living standards for constituents.

Question

What steps she plans to take to help improve living standards?

Answer from Darren Jones

We plan to raise living standards by boosting economic growth and developing a comprehensive strategy on child poverty. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility estimates that living standards will increase at more than double the pace observed in the previous Parliament.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific steps and timeline not provided, only general approach mentioned.

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Q2 Natalie Fleet Lab Bolsover
Employment Children & Families
Context

The MP is concerned about rising child poverty levels in Bolsover and seeks specific government measures.

Question

Fourteen years of Conservative rule meant that we all saw child poverty levels rise. One in five children across the country now grows up in scarring poverty. A quarter of all children in Bolsover live in poverty. Can the Minister please set out the measures that this Labour Government will take to end this travesty?

Answer from Darren Jones

From 1 April 2025, the national living wage will increase by 6.7% to £12.21 per hour for eligible workers aged 21 and over. The Government have set up a ministerial taskforce on child poverty that will report in 2025.

Partly answered

Not addressed: No specific measures or timeline outlined, only general commitments mentioned.

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Q3 Pamela Nash Lab Motherwell, Wishaw and Carluke
Scotland
Context

The MP is interested in the direct impact of the Chancellor's Budget on her constituency.

Question

In the Chancellor's first ever Budget, she delivered over £1.5 billion for Scotland this year and £3.4 billion next year—the largest ever block grant settlement in the history of the Scottish Parliament. Can the Minister share with the House a bit more detail about how the Budget will directly impact and improve the lives of people in my constituency of Motherwell, Wishaw and Carluke, and throughout Scotland?

Answer from Darren Jones

The Scottish Government's spending review settlement for 2025-26 is the largest in real terms since devolution began. The Scottish Government are receiving at least 20% more per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the United Kingdom.

Not addressed: Did not address how budget impacts specific areas or constituencies.

How: Discussed Overall Scottish Funding Instead

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Q4 Graham Stuart Con Beverley and Holderness
Taxation
Context

The MP is questioning the direct financial impacts of a tax rise on individuals.

Question

Can the Minister confirm that of the £26.4 billion tax rise through the increase in employer NICs, £19 billion will come directly out of people's pay packets? Secondly, can he confirm that the net amount that the Treasury will actually get from that £26.4 billion after behavioural change and public sector compensation is just £11 billion?

Answer from Darren Jones

The right hon. Gentleman seems to have forgotten the cost that working people paid as a consequence of his party's actions in government, with inflation on house prices racing to 11%, the cost of living crisis, higher energy bills and a loss of grip on public spending.

Not addressed: Did not confirm or deny tax increase financial impacts.

How: Criticised Previous Government

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Q5 Bradley Thomas Con Bromsgrove
Economy
Context

The MP is questioning the Chancellor's statement about a 'jobs tax' and its impact on wages.

Question

Will the Chancellor admit, as she has already done in the media, that wages will be lower because of her jobs tax?

Answer from Darren Jones

This Government's commitment to economic growth will improve living standards for people right across the country. I refer the hon. Member to my previous answer and suggest that his party might want to apologise before trying to lecture this Government on the change that we are delivering.

Not addressed: Did not admit or deny impact of jobs tax on wages.

How: Criticised Opposition

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