Contributions
1,533 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDTax IncreasesIn the spending review, the Government set out our spending plans and a fully funded path to spending 2.6% of GDP on defence. We have an ambition to increase it to 3% in the next…10 Jul 2025HANSARDTax IncreasesMy noble friend is absolutely right to point out the mess that we inherited and why so many difficult decisions had to be taken. He is right to point to the mess they left us in…10 Jul 2025HANSARDTax IncreasesThe noble Lord is just talking about the revenue maximisation point. We are past that, for example, on tobacco taxes, as a deliberate government policy. Of course it exists; I do…10 Jul 2025HANSARDPrimary Stock Exchange ListingsI am grateful to the noble Baroness for her question. I do not necessarily share the overall pessimism that she started her question with. Of course, reform is necessary and that…10 Jul 2025HANSARDPrimary Stock Exchange ListingsMy noble friend is absolutely right on the importance of capital for start-ups and how we can enable them to scale up. It is why in the industrial strategy and the spending review…10 Jul 2025HANSARDTax IncreasesWhy does the noble Baroness think the UK has such a high stock of debt? Is it because her Government doubled the national debt? Yes, it is.10 Jul 2025HANSARDPrimary Stock Exchange ListingsI am grateful to the noble Baroness for her question. The Government recognise, as she did, that the UK’s equity markets have faced challenges in recent years, but that is not a…10 Jul 2025HANSARDPrimary Stock Exchange ListingsMy Lords, the Government want to see high-growth companies start, scale, list and stay in the UK. Current market sentiment is challenging, but the UK remains the top destination…10 Jul 2025HANSARDTax IncreasesI am grateful to the noble Lord for his question. It is not for me to ban conversations about tax rises or cuts, but I understand what he says about tax simplification and will…10 Jul 2025HANSARDTax IncreasesMy noble friend is right to point out the long-standing and long-term challenges that we face in fiscal policy. As the noble Lord opposite said, the OBR set out some long-standing…10 Jul 2025HANSARDTax IncreasesThe noble Baroness knows that I will not comment on specific financial market movements, but I will write to her on stablecoin if that is okay with her.10 Jul 2025HANSARDTax IncreasesThe noble Lord is absolutely correct that there are financial consequences to the decisions that have been taken, but he will not be surprised to know that I will not speculate on…10 Jul 2025HANSARDFinancial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities etc.) (Amendment) Order 2025That the draft Order laid before the House on 19 May be approved. Relevant document: 28th Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (special attention drawn to the…10 Jul 2025HANSARDGovernment Performance against Fiscal RulesI normally try to agree with the noble Baroness, but that is one of the most extraordinary questions I have heard in these debates. She says that we should protect the NHS and…08 Jul 2025HANSARDGovernment Performance against Fiscal RulesI do not think the public are getting bored of it. The noble and learned Lord may be getting bored of it, perhaps because he is slightly sensitive about it. If he thinks that 14…08 Jul 2025HANSARDGovernment Performance against Fiscal RulesMy Lords, I will tell the noble Lord what matters in terms of controlling the public finances: economic growth, which his Government singularly failed on. Whether it was the Liz…08 Jul 2025HANSARDGovernment Performance against Fiscal RulesI may have agreed with the first half of the noble Viscount’s question; I am not sure I agreed with the second half of it. But, absolutely, the best way to repair the public…08 Jul 2025HANSARDGovernment Performance against Fiscal RulesThe noble Baroness mentions many things. She mentions debt. Of course, the last Government doubled the national debt. There is one reason why we are where we are. It is because of…08 Jul 2025HANSARDGovernment Performance against Fiscal RulesI know that that is the policy of the noble Lord’s party; it is not the policy of this party. The OBR fiscal risks report talks about an ageing population and how that presents…08 Jul 2025HANSARDGovernment Performance against Fiscal RulesMy noble friend is absolutely right. It is exactly because of the experience of the previous Government—that disastrous Liz Truss mini-Budget, which saw mortgage rates spiral and…08 Jul 2025