What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the effect on businesses of proposed TV advertising restrictions to help reduce rates of obesity.
I assure my hon. Friend that I meet regularly with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on a range of issues. My Department has engaged with businesses and colleagues across the country and within Government to ensure that our policy is proportionate and achieves the Government’s desired public health outcomes.
Craig Whittaker [V]
I thank my right hon. Friend for that answer. He may be aware that the scope of products captured in this proposal will be very wide indeed, including kitchen cupboard products such as All-Bran, HP sauce and cough sweets such as Fisherman’s Friend—products that are unlikely to appeal to children. Given the significant hit to business and UK broadcasters specifically, will he commit to working with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to narrow the scope of products covered by this proposal?
Of course I would be very happy to work closely with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. As I noted in my initial answer, my Department has worked closely with the Department of Health and Social Care up to this point, but I would be happy to hear more from my hon. Friend about this particularly important issue.
What recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on increasing support to businesses affected by the covid-19 outbreak.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Amanda Solloway)
My right hon. Friend the Chancellor has extended our support measures in the most recent Budget to provide an additional £65 billion. With the new restart grant scheme, the Government will have allocated a total of £25 billion in business grants. Our restart grants will provide up to £6,000 for non-essential retail businesses and up to £18,000 for hospitality, personal care and gyms. This year and next year, we are spending £407 billion to support people and businesses throughout the pandemic.
Women in Business
Vaccine Taskforce
Covid-19: Wedding Industry
Rural Electricity Grid Investment: Electric Vehicles
Dismiss and Re-engage Tactics in Negotiations
Energy Efficiency in Homes
Covid-19: Supply Chain Businesses
Paid Neonatal Leave
British Steel Production
Horizon Europe
Energy Transition Projects in Scotland
Covid-19: Support for Businesses
Topical Questions
20 of 152 shown
The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Kwasi Kwarteng)
ConservativeSpelthorne
I am grateful for the opportunity to say here in the House that the Government do intend to bring forward the employment Bill when parliamentary time allows.
The TUC estimates that 3.6 million people—one worker in nine—were in insecure work ahead of the coronavirus outbreak, leaving them exposed to massive drops in income or unsafe working conditions. It was bad then, and it is worse now. The Government have driven the author of their own Taylor review to say in quite extraordinary terms that the Government have lost their “enthusiasm” for enforcing workers’ rights. With no employment Bill yet on the horizon, is that not the plain truth for all to see? Whose side are the Government on?
I will take no lessons from the hon. Lady about workers’ rights and what this Government have done over many years to protect workers’ rights. The national living wage is higher than it has ever been in this country’s history. We have taken thousands of people out of tax, and I am not going to take any lectures from her.
If the Secretary of State will not take lessons from my hon. Friend the Member for Feltham and Heston (Seema Malhotra), will he take lessons from the TUC, which estimates that fire and rehire is most likely to take place among young people and black and Asian workers, or will he take lessons from Go North West, which sacked its workforce in Greater Manchester, and offered them increased hours of work, loss of sick pay and a reduction in annual pay of £2,500? Is that what the Secretary of State wants, to make Britain the best place in the world for work?
I appreciate the hon. Gentleman’s question. He will know that I take my relations and my conversations with the TUC extremely seriously. I have met a number of TUC leaders since taking up the post two months ago, and I am very conscious that fire and rehire as a negotiating tactic is completely unacceptable.
The Secretary of State says that he does not take lessons from Labour—this is from the man who described the British as
“the worst idlers in the world.”
The Supreme Court ruling that Uber drivers are workers, rejecting the company’s claim that its drivers are self-employed, sets a precedent for all gig economy workers, who will also be entitled to the minimum wage, holiday pay and sick pay, but it took Uber drivers six long years of legal action to have their rights recognised. The Government must not abandon the 3 million adults in the UK working in the gig economy to spend years fighting in the courts. So will the Secretary of State commit to introducing legislation in this Session of Parliament to ensure that all gig economy workers receive basic employment rights?
As I said in response to an earlier question, we are going to introduce an employment Bill not in this Session but when parliamentary time allows. We are also of course considering the effects of this extremely important Supreme Court ruling and we are considering options to improve clarity around employment status.
Chris Stephens [V]
Scottish National PartyGlasgow South West
We know that when big business is set to fail former Prime Minister David Cameron uses his hotline to the Chancellor. With 3 million still excluded and the £20 universal credit uplift, furlough and self-employed support ending in September, can the Minister tell us whether any former Tory leaders have contacted the Department on their behalf, or is it sink or swim for the ordinary folk?
Amanda Solloway
As I have indicated before, this Government have done unprecedented work and one of the things we do all the time is speak to stakeholders and all the people we need to. Think about the money we have invested: £407 billion to support people and businesses throughout the pandemic.
Many bricks-and-mortar retailers are still desperately concerned about the build-up of commercial rents during the lockdown, including many pubs that are prevented from negotiating a rent review due to restrictions in regulation 7 of the pubs code. The recent extension of the ban on commercial evictions is welcome, but when will Ministers come forward with a long-term solution to commercial rents?