Contributions
715 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureWe considered before the Budget the matter of businesses being brought into business rates for the first time. We set out at the Budget the supporting small business relief…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureMy hon. Friend is right to raise the importance of live performance venues. They not only support our economy directly, through people visiting the venues and enjoying a good…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI must say, I am very jealous that my hon. Friend has over 100 pubs in his constituency; I have only 27 in mine, and I have not made it round all of them yet. He is right to…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureThe hon. Member is right that business rates policy is devolved. I am in conversation with the Governments in Scotland and Wales about a number of changes to taxation policy that…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureIf I get time and the parking permits in Camden allow it, I do like to drive down and have a walk in my hon. Friend’s constituency. I have not yet been made aware of that…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureIt is worth pausing to note that while some businesses will see increases in their bills, more than half of rate payers’ bills will either remain flat or will fall in the next…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI thank my hon. Friend for her question and for the engagement that she has carried out with businesses in her constituency, as a strong representative of the businesses and…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureIt is really important that we level the playing field for business rates paid by high street businesses in Stroud—for which my hon. Friend is a strong and active…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureOne of the challenges with the questions I am being asked by Opposition Members is that they seem to be suggesting that the Government should not have gone ahead with the…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI thank my hon. Friend for raising this issue. Many grassroots music venues are valued as pubs. Intricacies and complexities in the business rates system mean that, when we think…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI am glad that the hon. Member was able to ask the exact same question as the shadow Chancellor, the right hon. Member for Central Devon (Sir Mel Stride). I am not going to…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI thank my hon. Friend for her question and for her continued representation for the small businesses in her Bournemouth constituency, where I know there is a vibrant and growing…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureThis Government understand the pressures that hospitality businesses, and pubs in particular, are facing. One of the pressures, which I have heard about very clearly, relates to…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureWhen it comes to support for businesses, we are making sure that we bring back economic stability to this country, with six interest rate cuts that will reduce the cost of…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureWe want to provide stability in our taxation system, and one of the things that the Government are seeking to do in the coming years is to continue to have economic…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureWe are seeking to give even more support to those businesses than to the very largest ones. Under previous Governments, there would have been the same tax rate for those…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureThe right hon. Gentleman raised the issue of small businesses. It is worth nothing that a third of properties pay no business rates at all, as they receive 100% small business…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI will happily talk further with the hon. Member about any changes that we can make to give councils more powers in relation to the issue he raises. It is not a topic that has…19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI fully respect your decision to grant an urgent question, Mr Speaker. It was— [ Interruption. ]19 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureThe shadow Chancellor said that I was dragged to the House, but that is very much not the case; I am very happy to take questions from him and from Conservative and Government…19 Jan 2026