Contributions
1,533 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesI hope it is understood. I agree with much of what my noble friend says. He will know that we have provided £2.5 million of funding this year for Arts Council England’s Supporting…26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesI am grateful for the support that the right reverend Prelate set out in his question. I assure him that that will be responded to very shortly.26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesAs noble Lords will know, I am very happy to agree with the noble Earl on the last point he raises: the incredibly damaging effect of Brexit on that sector in particular. He will…26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesI am not in a position to promise who specifically will attend the meeting, but I will absolutely take that representation back to the department to see if it is possible. I agree…26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesI will absolutely do what the noble Baroness asks. The Government have heard exactly what she said: that the existing policy to mitigate the impact of development on existing…26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesMy Lords, we are introducing permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties, including grass-roots music venues, worth nearly £1 billion a…26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesI am grateful to my noble friend for the question. I am very happy to meet the groups that he mentioned. He is absolutely right to say that the creative sector is extremely…26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesI do not think so. I shall repeat what my right honourable friend Ian Murray, the Culture Minister, said on the industry levy: “My ambition is to see the voluntary levy in place…26 Jan 2026HANSARDGrass-roots Music VenuesThe Government have been very clear that the lower multipliers will broadly reflect the scope of the current retail, hospitality and leisure business rates relief, which is…26 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI do not think I heard a question at the end there. As I have said, we are working with the sector to ensure that it gets the support it needs.20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureThe noble Baroness is absolutely right about the important role that those businesses play in giving young people their first jobs, and I agree with her. We are taking significant…20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI agree with a great deal of what the noble Baroness says. HMRC has announced substantial measures to crack down on some of the businesses she mentioned, and I think she will have…20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI understand and agree with a lot of what the noble Baroness says. It is important that we are able to create certainty for those businesses, but we did spend £4.3 billion at the…20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureThat is an excellent question. Of course, we have separate strategies for the retail, hospitality and leisure sector. With the industrial strategy, we are trying to do something…20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI do not disagree with what the noble Baroness says. It is very important to say that we are fundamentally reforming the business rates system by introducing permanently lower…20 Jan 2026HANSARDCrown Estate (Wales) Bill [HL]My Lords, while the Government’s position on this matter has been made clear during earlier stages of both this Bill and the recent Crown Estate Act, I congratulate the noble…20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureMy noble friend is correct to say that pubs have been struggling in this economy for a long time. In the previous 14 years under the last Government, 7,000 pubs closed in the UK,…20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureAs the noble Baroness knows, and as I have said before, the previous revaluation was based on property values during the Covid pandemic, which meant that rateable values were much…20 Jan 2026HANSARDBusiness Rates: Retail, Hospitality and LeisureI absolutely hear what the noble Lord says, and I understand the points he is making. As I said, noble Lords will have heard what the Prime Minister and Chancellor have said in…20 Jan 2026HANSARDPublic Sector ProductivityI am. We are investing £10 billion in digital technologies within the NHS. We have introduced a 2% efficiency and productivity target in the NHS for each year of this Parliament.…07 Jan 2026