Key Facts

• The Finance Bill addresses economic challenges.
• Supports proposed measures within the bill.
• The Finance Bill includes support measures such as an 80% wage guarantee for furloughed workers covering around 95% of self-employed individuals.
• The job retention scheme covers over £300 billion in Government-backed loans, tax cuts and grants with a business rates holiday for affected sectors.
• Universal credit standard allowance has been raised by £1,000 to support the vulnerable during the pandemic.
• Research and development expenditure credit rates will increase from 12% to 13%, encouraging growth and productivity.
• Anneliese Dodds is called to speak for no more than 15 minutes.
• The topic relates to the Finance Bill.
• The poorest 10% of households have seen losses of 11% due to reforms since 2010.
• Among those with children, losses amount to 20%, or £1 out of every £5 for low-income families with kids.
• A quarter of UK families entered the crisis with less than £100 in savings.
• The Bill rows back on the Government’s commitment to cut corporation tax further to 17% and maintains it at 19%.
• TaxWatch UK suggests that the UK is losing £1.3 billion in corporation tax from just five of the largest technology firms.
• The Bill introduces a digital services tax, but its scope is restricted.
• There is no substantive change in the Government’s approach to tax reliefs.
• The Office for Budget Responsibility suggested a 35% contraction in the economy followed by rapid bounce back.
• Five tests must be met before exiting lockdown, including avoiding a second surge of the virus.
• £24 billion-worth of tax reliefs annually related to businesses need examination.
• Stride calls on the Financial Secretary and Government to ensure transparency regarding loan delivery.
• Scotland is facing a £400 million shortfall relative to the UK government's promised funding.
• The UK government has failed to provide Scotland’s £5.8 billion of the DUP’s Brexit bungs and £175 million of VAT owed to Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
• Clause 12 gives Ministers power by regulation to exempt certain social security benefits from income tax.
• A letter from campaigners highlights that tens of thousands of households will lose out due to the size of their family under universal credit rules.
• The cut to employers’ national insurance goes only a third of the way towards the £2,500 commitment in the Tories' manifesto.
• R3 estimates that the proposed HMRC preferential status could hit lending by at least £1 billion per annum.
• OGUK chief executive Deirdre Michie has called for a COVID-19 resilience package to protect the supply chain and jobs.
• The chief medical officer predicts living with covid-19 for up to 18 months.
• Businesses face difficulties due to supply chain disruptions and lack of raw materials.
• Banks are asking desperate businesses for cash forecasts for the next nine months, which is impractical.
• PB Plumbing has been in business for 30 years and relies on dividends paid by the founder/owner.
• Kupros Dairy makes award-winning cheeses that were sold to 200 restaurants but now faces a collapsed market due to closures.
• The IMF predicts a global recession worse than the 2007 crash.
• Global trade could collapse by 31% this year according to the WTO.
• OBR predicts a 35% reduction in GDP and over 2 million increase in unemployment in Q2.
• Tower Hamlets Council is spending £25 million and losing £35 million of income.
• The coronavirus lockdown has revealed an inequality where better-paid professionals pay lower tax rates compared to key workers.
• Low-income key workers can face an effective marginal tax rate of up to 75%.
• Tax rates on investment income are lower than those on wages and salaries.
• The MP warns about the neglect of the manufacturing base by Whitehall.
• Government support should go directly to frontline workers and companies with practical experience rather than consulting firms.
• Denmark and Poland have declined subsidies to companies in tax havens or engaging in practices like paying dividends, lavish bonuses, or using share buy-back schemes.
• The MP suggests government procurement of buses, cars, vans, trucks, council housing, road repairs, health service equipment, protective clothing, chemicals, and vaccine production capacity.
• The furlough scheme should accommodate income from dividend receipts.
• Access to cash is crucial, especially in rural areas.
• NoteMachine would revert to free charging if the previous interchange rate was reinstated.
• The Roadchef employee benefits trust faces distribution issues due to lack of registration.
• The number of new cases has started to fall.
• Hospital admissions are coming down but the death toll remains high.
• IR35 changes have been extended by one year.
• Bounce-back loan scheme introduced with a £50,000 limit.
• Small businesses and hospitality grants exclude those in shared premises.
• Manchester airport is crucial for jobs in the speaker's constituency.
• There are about 5 million self-employed people in the UK.
• The Government has offered tax holidays, reductions, and deferrals.
• A quarter or more of companies cannot trade due to public health measures.
• The Chancellor announced that bounce-back loans are now fully government-backed.
• Other countries such as the US, China, Germany, and Switzerland have implemented measures more quickly than the UK for supporting SMEs during the crisis.
• A new 2% tax has been introduced on revenues of search engines, social media platforms, and online marketplaces deriving value from UK users.
• Global trade growth downgraded from 2.8% to 0.7%.
• Number of non-tariff barriers increased from 300 to 1,200 between 2010 and 2015.
• Oil demand is 30% below the level of the previous year.
• The Finance Bill is criticised for not addressing current economic challenges.
• Businesses in Gower, especially those in hospitality, need support to maintain employment during the pandemic.
• Welsh Government provides additional grants and loans that UK businesses do not have access to.
• Key workers deemed clinically extremely vulnerable face a financial and health trap if their employers do not furlough them.
• The UK economy has struggled to benefit low-income constituents.
• Multinational tech giants avoid billions of pounds in tax annually.
• Key workers deserve a new social contract with fair reward and public service investment.
• The business interruption loan scheme is complex, lengthy, and inconsistent between lenders.
• Nottingham City Council distributed over £33 million in small business grants by last Friday.
• Many small businesses renting space from multi-occupancy buildings are unable to access the £10,000 small business grant due to a system anomaly.
• The Debt Management Office will borrow an extra £180 billion.
• Quantitative easing (QE) will increase by an additional £200 billion, bringing the total to £645 billion.
• The countercyclical capital buffer release adds £190 billion of extra lending capacity for banks.
• Britain faces its worst economic crisis since World War II.
• The Liberal Democrats propose three key objectives: fairness, sustainability, and internationalism.
• Local authorities are facing dramatic spending increases and revenue losses.
• Davey suggests using existing online platforms for faster government-backed business loans.
• The scale of global downturn is unprecedented, leading to high unemployment rates globally.
• There are concerns about the destruction of consumption and supply chains due to the pandemic.
• Maintaining market confidence in public finances is crucial as borrowing increases significantly during the crisis.
• Fysh advocates for a US trade deal and international deals post-lockdown.
• A director's small business had to wait three weeks for CBIL application details, followed by seven days for a response after submitting an application.
• The business applied for £30,000 through the CBIL scheme.
• Nationally, banks have lent £2.8 billion through the BIS to 16,600 firms, with an acceptance rate of just 48%.
• In Germany, £7.4 billion has been lent via a similar programme with an approval rate of 98%.
• The Welsh Government’s £500 million economic resilience fund has received almost 9,000 requests for support.
• Celsa Steel and world-beating film and TV production companies in Cardiff South and Penarth have significant local impacts.
• A Musicians’ Union survey shows that 38% of respondents do not qualify for Government assistance schemes.
• The loan charge was introduced in the Finance Act 2016.
• Sir Amyas Morse led an independent review of the design and implementation of the loan charge, published in December 2019.
• More than 8,000 individuals entered into schemes between April and October 2019.
• The MP requests that the loan charge takes effect from the date of Royal Assent of the 2017 Finance Act.
• Hillier welcomes the Government's support for start-ups.
• She raises concerns about the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme requiring personal guarantees from businesses.
• The issue of sole directors, including those of personal service companies, not qualifying for employment support schemes is highlighted.
• Hillier mentions a housing market package in 1992 and another initiative in 2008 to buy unsold properties to provide homes for homeless families.
• A £1 billion fund announced in the Budget for cladding issues is described as insufficient, with details on how it will be bid for expected but potentially delayed.
• OBR analysis predicts a 35% fall in UK GDP by June.
• KPMG analysis suggests the west midlands will be hardest hit.
• Meriden is an economic hub in the west midlands.
• Chancellor announced measures to increase national living wage and minimum NI threshold.
• R&D tax credit increased from 12% to 13%.
• IR35 reforms delayed until 2021.
• The entire country has come to a standstill with no historical precedent.
• A burgeoning tourism industry includes eco pods, cider producers, and biking contributing to growth in south Wales.
• Many businesses are struggling to access grant and loan schemes, especially CBILS.
• Bounce-back loans will have a 100% Government-backed guarantee for lenders starting next Monday.
• Under the bounce-back loan scheme, businesses can apply for loans of £2,000 to £50,000.
• As of April 23, only over 16,000 loans had been approved in the UK compared to 170,000 in France and 100,000 in Switzerland.
• Government’s plan for public investment in research and development to £22 billion per year by 2025.
• Research and development tax credits set to rise.
• Proposal to include data cloud computing within R&D tax credit qualifying expenditure.
• Households face a fall in disposable income of £515 a month due to the pandemic.
• Over 1 million new claimants have signed on for benefits since the start of the coronavirus crisis.
• The north-east has the highest unemployment rate in the UK.
• South Tyneside Council and Gateshead Council have lost more than half of their funding during the past decade.
• One in three children are living in poverty in the South Tyneside and Gateshead local authority area.
• There were over five times as many universal credit claims within a month during the pandemic.
• The coronavirus business interruption loan scheme provided 16,000 loans worth £2.8 billion to SMEs in four weeks.
• The French scheme has provided 174,000 loans worth €24 billion.
• The MP welcomes additional investment in regions like North East Derbyshire for broadband, R&D and infrastructure such as a bypass proposed since 1927.
• Challenges with alcohol duty dilution impacting towns reliant on the sector are noted.
• The Chancellor introduced bounce-back loans to support businesses.
• The Finance Bill reflects legal necessities but fails to address the fiscal challenges effectively.
• Small businesses are the lifeblood of the economy in the northern isles, including builders, plumbers, electricians, joiners, decorators, and others working out of homes or vans.
• The tourism sector involves many individuals who rely on the visitor economy for their livelihoods.
• A local hotel fears staying closed until next Easter if it does not open during the summer months.
• About 75% of clients from a chartered accountant in the constituency are not eligible for existing support schemes.
• The MP suggests considering the introduction of a universal basic income.
• The Chancellor has announced a comprehensive package of measures to support businesses and individuals during the crisis.
• Forecasters predict the sharpest recession in over a century due to the lockdown.
• The national debt could rise to as much as 100% of GDP, according to OBR projections.
• The Riverside constituency includes many leisure, hospitality, university, dental practices, freelancers, and micro-businesses.
• Businesses receiving mandatory relief for charities are not eligible for a £10,000 grant scheme despite contributions through taxes.
• As of April 16, only 6,020 loans worth £1.1 billion have been made under CBILS.
• The self-employment income support scheme allows up to an 80% profit trading allowance for three months with a maximum monthly grant of £2,500.
• Over 3 million jobs have been created by British businesses since 2010.
• There is a lack of skilled, well-paid jobs in areas like Penistone and Stocksbridge.
• The Government's plan includes infrastructure investment and a towns fund to rebalance the economy.
• R&D tax credits are being increased as part of the Bill.
• £22 million per year will be spent on research and development.
• A £200 million boost is planned for the life sciences industry.
• People in her constituency are worried about job security, income, home stability, and family wellbeing.
• The Finance Bill offers little support to self-employed individuals who are more likely to be in relative poverty.
• Nurseries face potential staff redundancy due to eligibility criteria issues with the furlough scheme.
• Some businesses not registered for business rates miss out on crucial financial support.
• Poplar and Limehouse constituency suffers from the highest rate of child poverty in the country.
• CareTech's share price has risen by 12% since announcing stronger revenues and margins during the pandemic.
• £8 billion has been taken from councils’ social care budgets since 2010.
• The Government's business support measures are among the most generous worldwide.
• A tapering of grants above £51,000 in rateable value is proposed.
• Rateable values have almost 40% of appeals upheld.
• The George and Dragon pub in Houghton and Village House Inn in Findon are ineligible for support due to rateable value thresholds.
• The UK ranks 8th globally for ease of doing business but only 27th for ease of paying taxes.
• The research and development expenditure credit is proposed to increase from 12% to 13%, with a mere 0.81% rise in tax relief.
• In Ceredigion, 24% of employees worked in vulnerable sectors compared to 18% across the rest of the UK.
• The higher education sector generates up to 2,900 full-time equivalent jobs in Ceredigion.
• A survey by Visit Wales identified concerns about fixed costs among over 400 tourism businesses.
• The Government's programme is focused on avoiding a second peak in cases that would overwhelm the NHS.
• The Prime Minister has confirmed that the Government will work openly with industry and Opposition parties as they develop their plan.
• Measures in the Finance Bill aim to drive up research and development spend and education spending.
• The Home Secretary previously labelled many key workers as low-skilled.
• 61% of English care workers are paid below the real living wage.
• Over £7 billion was cut from council budgets for social care.
• The Conservative party has been in power for 10 years.
• The Institute for Fiscal Studies described the tax measures as 'piecemeal'.
• The Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts show severe economic challenges due to COVID-19.
• Corporation tax is maintained at 19%, not cut to 17% as initially planned.
• The digital services tax is welcomed but deemed insufficient.
• The Government has allocated more than £14 billion from the covid response fund to public services.
• The Chancellor announced a bounce-back loan scheme and refinements to make the CBIL scheme more accessible.
• The digital services tax is anticipated to collect £2 billion in revenue.
• Compensation for the Windrush generation and victims of the troubles will no longer be subject to certain taxes.
• CO2 emissions figures for vehicle excise duty are based on the worldwide harmonised light vehicle test procedure from 1 April 2020.
• Nigel Evans thanked all those who contributed to the smooth running of the proceedings.