Oral Answers to Questions

Kate Dearden Excerpts

Thursday 29th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Mr Jonathan Brash (Hartlepool) (Lab)]

6. What steps his Department is taking to support the hospitality sector in Hartlepool.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kate Dearden)]

I know my hon. Friend has been actively engaging with his local businesses, such as Camerons Brewery, to highlight their importance to the local economy, and I thank him for that. We have introduced permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses, while providing £4.3 billion to shield ratepayers from bill increases. On top of that, the Chancellor announced a 15% reduction in new business rates bills for pubs and live music venues, with bills then frozen for a further two years. We are also advancing licensing and planning reforms for the hospitality sector, and through the work of the hospitality support fund, we are providing £10 million to help hospitality venues grow and support jobseekers into the sector. Later this year, we will bring forward a new high streets strategy and work with the industry on its development.

[Mr Brash]

I thank the Minister for her answer. The Marine hotel in Seaton Carew in my constituency of Hartlepool has been run for the last 30 years by Lee and Claire Dexter. It is a family business run by hard-working people who are committed to their community, yet they have seen their business rates rise significantly, driven not by the multiplier but by the sharp increase in the rateable value. They need help, so I welcome the steps set out this week to support pubs. Will the Minister meet me to look at ways that we can fix the business rates system, which is failing hotels and wider hospitality in Hartlepool?

[Kate Dearden]

I thank my hon. Friend for championing businesses like the Marine hotel in Hartlepool. Hotels will continue to benefit from the support for business rates announced at the Budget, including the transitional relief scheme, which will cap increases for those seeing large overnight increases. We have announced that we will review the way that hotels are valued. We recognise that hotels have expressed concerns about how they are valued for business rates, and those valuations are undertaken in a different way from some other sectors. The methodology used is well established, but as with pubs, specific concerns have been raised, and it is right to review this to ensure that it accurately reflects the rental values for these sectors. I am happy to discuss this further.

[Iqbal Mohamed (Dewsbury and Batley) (Ind)]

7. Whether he plans to resume previously suspended arms export licences to Israel.

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[Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)]

10. What steps he is taking to support hospitality businesses.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kate Dearden)]

Hospitality businesses are vital to our community and city centres. We have introduced permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality and leisure properties and have provided £4.3 billion to shield ratepayers from bill increases. On top of this, the Chancellor announced a 15% reduction in new business rates bills for pubs and live music venues, and bills will be frozen for a further two years. We are also advancing licensing and planning reforms for the hospitality sector, and through the work of the hospitality support fund we are providing £10 million to help hospitality venues to grow and to support jobseekers into the sector. Later this year, we will bring forward a new high streets strategy, and we will work with the industry on its development.

[Joe Robertson]

What the Minister does not say is that the Government have also taxed those businesses and made it harder to employ people, which is why there are 100,000 fewer people working in hospitality since her Government came to power. Hospitality businesses in my constituency are hanging on to one thread of hope: the vague assertion that the Government will look again at valuations. Will the Minister look again right now, scrap business rates for hospitality and back our high streets?

[Kate Dearden]

Every high street in every corner of our country is supported by our hospitality industry. They are absolutely vital to our economy, supporting over 2 million jobs. The sector is really personal to me; my first job was in the hospitality industry, and I know that many Members across this House also have that personal connection. We are reversing the damage that Conservative Members did to our economy, and businesses still do not thank them for it. Nor do people whose wages under the previous Government simply did not give them the disposable income to spend in their local pubs, spend in their high streets and support restaurants. That is why we are reversing that, ensuring that people see a rise in their living standards, cutting costs for households and raising wages to boost and support our high streets. That is what we are absolutely focused on doing: rebalancing our economy so that it works for working people and businesses alike. That is a responsible Government taking action.

[Christine Jardine]

The Minister referred to there being hospitality businesses in every corner of this country. Unfortunately, the change in business rates does not help hospitality businesses in every corner of this country because business rates are devolved in Scotland and Wales, and the businesses in my constituency of Edinburgh West are struggling. Hospitality is absolutely vital to the Scottish economy, and so far the SNP Government have proved completely ineffectual at dealing with the issue. The Minister speaks about the strategy coming later in the year. In it, might it be useful for VAT to be reduced for businesses in this sector across the UK, so that every corner of the United Kingdom can benefit?

[Kate Dearden]

All the devolved Governments have full control over the structure and level of business rates within their jurisdiction. As the hon. Lady mentioned, the new relief applies to England only; however, the devolved Governments have additional funding to allocate according to their priorities. We call on the SNP to decide whether to match the support for pubs and music venues that we have decided this week to provide. It is up to them to decide how to spend their money; we have made it clear this week what our priorities are and how we would do it.

[Jo Platt (Leigh and Atherton) (Lab/Co-op)]

A lot of the hospitality small and medium-sized enterprises in my constituency start out as market traders. As we know, our markets are a vital part of our identity and central to our local ecosystem, giving businesses the space to start, test and grow. Does the Minister agree that markets and hospitality are key to reviving our high streets, and will she meet me to discuss a national traders strategy to secure a strong pipeline for future success?

[Kate Dearden]

I thank my hon. Friend for her question, and for championing the brilliant hospitality sector, businesses and markets in her constituency—I have the wonderful Halifax borough market in my constituency, so I know the importance of thriving traders to our high streets and local economies. I would be more than happy to meet my hon. Friend and hear her thoughts on how we can work together to restore pride in our high streets; our traders are vital to that, which is why our high streets strategy this year will be so important. It will look at all those areas, directly investing in our communities to ensure local businesses can thrive, high streets bustle and pride is restored to our high streets and communities.

[Chris Webb (Blackpool South) (Lab)]

Hospitality in Blackpool is struggling. The cuts under the previous Government made Blackpool the most deprived coastal community and town in the country, but it has a solution: a new Blackpool tourism enterprise zone that expands our current enterprise zone along the promenade into the hospitality and tourism businesses. Will the Minister meet me and the managing director of Blackpool Tourism Ltd, Kate Shane, to discuss her idea to create jobs and unlock growth and investment in Blackpool?

[Kate Dearden]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question, and for all his work on behalf of his constituency and businesses in Blackpool. He makes an excellent point, and I would be keen to hear more about his work and discuss it further. Through the hospitality zones that we are looking to create, there is a real opportunity to drive investment and ensure that businesses and people alike benefit across our country.

[Victoria Collins (Harpenden and Berkhamsted) (LD)]

Hospitality is on its knees, and it is already too late for many of the pubs and restaurants in Harpenden and Berkhamsted that are closing down. The small café Nook in Markyate is a real lifeline for that village, but Helen, the owner, talks about business rates, national insurance costs and the minimum wage. The Liberal Democrats have long been crying out, alongside the hospitality sector, for Government help for the sector. Although we welcome the U-turn, I call on the Minister and the Government to hear that cry before the next one, when it will be too late for the next swathe of hospitality businesses that will have closed down.

[Kate Dearden]

Over the longer term, we have committed to reviewing the methodology used for business rates purposes. If necessary, we will make changes to ensure that the next revaluation accurately reflects the rental market for these properties. We will be conducting that expert review, working closely with the hotel and pub sectors. We want to see our high streets thrive, and hospitality is key to that, in the hon. Lady’s constituency and across our whole economy. That is what I want to see, and it is what we are committed to work towards.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool Riverside) (Lab)]

Liverpool’s hospitality sector and its small businesses continue to tell me that soaring business rates are pushing them to the brink. Many independent shops, cafés and community venues—pillars of our local high streets—are now facing increases far above what they can absorb, especially in energy and supply costs. These are businesses that create local jobs, drive footfall and keep our high streets alive, so can the Minister explain what immediate steps the Government will take to reform the business rates system so that it no longer disproportionately penalises areas such as Liverpool, and will she commit to meet affected business owners in my constituency to hear directly about the pressures they are facing and the urgent support they need to survive?

[Kate Dearden]

We are introducing new, permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties worth nearly £1 billion per year, which will benefit over 750,000 properties. Next year, the rate for small RHL properties will be the lowest since business rates were introduced more than 30 years ago. This is paid for through higher rates on the 1% most expensive properties, which includes many large distribution warehouses such as those used by online giants—that high value multiplier is 33% more than the multiplier for small RHL properties. That is what we committed to in our manifesto. Creating a new, sustainable system with permanently lower multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties will make a massive difference for people. We will be publishing a call for evidence in September, exploring potential longer-term reforms, and I urge my hon. Friend to get involved in that call for evidence and to share it, too.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call the shadow Secretary of State.

[Andrew Griffith (Arundel and South Downs) (Con)]

The Minister has just heard from across the House continuing pleas to support the hospitality industry. It is always a good day when the Government U-turn and provide more support for pubs, so we welcome that. However, unless the Minister can explain to us when a pub becomes a gastropub, when a gastropub becomes a restaurant, and when a restaurant with rooms becomes a hotel and descends down that wormhole, will she make representations to the Chancellor to extend the same measures for pubs that she U-turned on this week across the whole retail, hospitality and leisure sector? The truth of the matter is that 90% of that sector will not benefit from this week’s U-turn.

[Kate Dearden]

Good morning to the shadow Secretary of State. I am sure he had a stiff drink after his performance at Prime Minister’s questions yesterday.

All pubs and live music venues that meet the definition set out in the guidance qualify for the support, and he will be able to see that clearly online. We will be working with local authorities to ensure that the definition includes establishments open to wide sections of local communities. I have already discussed valuations for pubs, how we take turnover into account and how we will work closely with the wider sector on valuations going forward. This is a Government who are working closely with the sector and are committed to listening. That is being a responsible Government, and we are doing the right thing.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

[Sarah Olney (Richmond Park) (LD)]

The heavy burden of Labour’s national insurance contributions rise, compounded by high energy costs and the business rates increase, has raised alarm about the affordability of hospitality businesses’ monthly employment costs. Some 84,000 jobs in the hospitality sector alone have been lost since the NICs rise was introduced, and that is particularly damaging to young people, many of whom have traditionally found their first jobs in the hospitality sector, including the Minister, as she just said at the Dispatch Box. With the sector struggling to employ new workers, damage is being done to the career prospects of our young people, and it will be detrimental to the broader economy in the long term. Business confidence is down, job vacancies are down and unemployment is up, so what steps will the Department take to tackle high unemployment costs, support businesses and bring down those increasingly high levels of unemployment?

[Kate Dearden]

A decade of stagnant growth and living standards will not be turned around in 18 months, but there are signs of progress. The Conservatives left one in eight young people out of education, employment and training, and we are working relentlessly to turn around that disgraceful figure. We recognise the challenges that businesses have to work through as a result of the actions undertaken by the previous Government. On youth unemployment, we have announced an £828 million funding package to give a generation of young people a brighter future. Over the next three years, 1 million young people on universal credit across the country will benefit from support designed to get them into employment and learning, and that includes what we are doing with small businesses on apprenticeships, which we are partly funding. That will be significant, especially for the hospitality sector, in encouraging more jobs. Those jobs are a key lifeline for people to get into the employment market. That is something I recognise, as the hon. Lady noted. We know the importance of this issue, and we want to work closely with the sector and with councils in the significant wider work we are doing on the strategy.

[Lizzi Collinge (Morecambe and Lunesdale) (Lab)]

9. What steps his Department is taking to help increase economic growth in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency.

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[Peter Swallow (Bracknell) (Lab)]

11. What steps he is taking to improve workers’ rights in Bracknell Forest.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kate Dearden)]

Our plan to make work pay will bring employment rights legislation into the 21st century by extending the protections given by the best British companies to millions more workers, including those in Bracknell Forest. We are delivering this change in partnership with businesses, trade unions, public sector employers and civil society. When implemented, the Employment Rights Act 2025 will increase protection from sexual harassment, extend and strengthen statutory sick pay, end exploitative zero hours contracts, and tackle fire and rehire, with over 18 million workers gaining greater fairness and security.

[Peter Swallow]

Across the country, millions of fathers can be denied time off work to spend with a newborn child. Thousands of carers are out of work because employers will not give them the flexibility they need. This Government are delivering day one paternity leave, and we are listening on carer’s leave. I know what a difference that will make to my constituents. Can the Minister think why the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) and his Reform MPs voted against this change?

[Kate Dearden]

I thank my hon. Friend for his really important question; he is absolutely right to raise this issue. Reform voted against the Employment Rights Act at every single opportunity. The hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) would row back on the protections that we have given to 18 million workers across the country, including the vital day one paternity leave and parental leave, statutory sick pay for the lowest paid, protections for pregnant workers, increased protection from unfair dismissal, an end to exploitative zero-hours contracts, a new right to bereavement leave and so much more. Reform is simply not the party for working people; Labour is. Reform Members voted against the Act, and their plans would threaten employment up and down the country.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call the shadow Secretary of State.

[Andrew Griffith (Arundel and South Downs) (Con)]

Of course, it is not just Bracknell, and one day those on the Labour Benches will understand that there are no workers’ rights if people have no work. Youth unemployment is up significantly. That is a tragedy that everybody should be ashamed of, and it is going up on Labour’s watch. Small businesses, which provide so many jobs, are very worried about the administrative burden of trade union access. We are talking about the very smallest businesses—pubs, restaurants, garden centres and small catering businesses. They are the backbone of our communities. As the Minister tries to implement the Employment Rights Act, will she consider lifting the threshold for the trade union access agreements to a headcount of 250—that is recognised elsewhere in law as a threshold—which would protect our very smallest businesses from that administrative burden?

[Kate Dearden]

To hear the Conservative party try to lecture us across the Dispatch Box on trade union engagement, industrial relations and how we operate our economy is very interesting. The hon. Gentleman knows that I am working really closely with businesses of all sizes—small and large—and with our trade unions and partners, because that is the right thing to do. The Employment Rights Act is a significant piece of legislation. We want to get it right, but we also want to fundamentally change how we do things in this country. That is the right thing to do, and we are taking the responsible action to do so. We recognise that there are lots of changes, which is why are working in a staged way over the next two years to implement them, and we are doing so in partnership with businesses and trade unions. We want to work together to deliver this. It represents significant change for 18 million people across the country, and businesses are vital in delivering it. That is why we are working together to do so.

[Chris Bloore (Redditch) (Lab)]

12. What recent progress he has made on the implementation of single worker status.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kate Dearden)]

I am having quite the outing today, Madam Deputy Speaker!

I welcome the question from my hon. Friend, whose business experience as the chief executive of an international trade association gives him acute insight into this topic. This Government are committed to tackling the pressing issues with the current employment status framework, and we will publish our consultation as soon as possible. The consultation will seek to address issues with the framework that can enable worker exploitation and leave vulnerable workers without core employment protections.

[Chris Bloore]

I thank the Minister for her answer. She will know that too many parcel couriers in my constituency and across the country are on bogus self-employment contracts and worse terms and conditions, with no holiday pay or sick leave. That is driving down standards across the sector and, of course, robbing the public purse of national insurance contributions. I welcome her commitment to announcing the consultation on single worker status. Can she guarantee that both employer and employee representations will be included in the consultation?

[Kate Dearden]

My hon. Friend raises an important issue, and I thank him for doing so. I agree that it is completely unacceptable for businesses to seek to undercut others in a race to the bottom through bogus self-employment. Employers should never seek to deny people their employment rights and to avoid their own legal obligations by claiming that someone is self-employed when in reality they might not be. We will therefore consult on the changes to the status framework and our action to improve compliance, and we will of course engage with all stakeholders as part of that.

[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

13. What steps he is taking to support businesses with their operating costs.

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[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kate Dearden)]

I thank my hon. Friend for her question. We are absolutely committed to ensuring that all jobs provide a baseline of security and predictability, and she perfectly outlines exactly why that is important. The next step is to consult before setting regulations to get that detail. I would love to hear from her further about those experiences—she has done hard work in this area over a long period of time. Providing workers with guaranteed hours is crucial for security.

[Graham Leadbitter (Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey) (SNP)]

T2. In its recently published quarterly statistics, the Aberdeen chamber of commerce confirmed that business confidence in the north-east has slumped to levels not seen since the height of the covid pandemic, with almost half of companies forecasting a fall in profits. The clear reason cited was the Labour Government’s refusal to ditch the tax on Scotland’s energy, resulting in 1,000 jobs being lost each month—akin to what Thatcher was doing to the coal communities in the ’80s. Can the Minister tell me why his Government are happy to see crucial north-east businesses suffering, and the communities that their workers support? Will he apologise to the workers of the north-east for the thousands of jobs that have been lost at the hands of this Labour Government?

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[Josh Fenton-Glynn (Calder Valley) (Lab)]

Almost one in three pubs in this country is a tied pub. In Calder Valley, one such pub saw its payments to Stonegate jump from £800 to £1,700 a week, just days after the six-month probationary period ended. I welcome the Government’s support for pubs, but that pub will still be paying 17 times more to Stonegate each year than it will in business rates. Will the Minister look at those unfair charges, and what can be done in regulation?

[Kate Dearden]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising that important case. He is my neighbouring colleague in wonderful Calder Valley, and our constituencies have some of the best pubs in the country. As he knows, the pubs code in England and Wales regulates the relationship between pub-owning businesses with 500 or more tied pubs, including Stonegate and its tied-pub tenants, and it aims to ensure that tenants are treated fairly. The Government are currently undertaking the third statutory review of the effectiveness of the code, and it may help to inform the review if my hon. Friend could write to me setting out the details of the example he mentioned.

[Shockat Adam (Leicester South) (Ind)]

When will the Government announce the results of their British industrial competitiveness scheme consultation, and provide the fabulous manufacturing industry in my constituency with some much-needed help towards its energy costs?