Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Tuesday 5th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Philip Hammond]

We regard the UK shared prosperity fund as very important, and we will launch a consultation this year on plans for the fund.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

T7. Will the Chancellor tell the House how many people in my Dover and Deal constituency, since 2010, are either paying no income tax whatsoever, thanks to Government policies, or have seen an income tax cut? While he is about it, could he put that in a spreadsheet for every single constituency so that the whole House can see what has been done?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Tuesday 16th January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

The hon. Gentleman makes an absolutely correct point. In the long run, higher wages can be delivered only through increased productivity. That means investment in infrastructure, investment in skills and training, and investment in research and development—with both public funding and tax incentives for private funding—and it means ensuring that capital is available for businesses to invest in the equipment that will raise the productivity of their workers. The Government’s ambition is for a high-wage, high-skill economy, and we are investing to deliver that.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Ind)]

Will the Chancellor confirm that the lowest-paid have in fact seen a 7% real- terms wage increase since 2015, and that income inequality is now at its lowest level for 30 years?

[Mr Hammond]

My hon. Friend is right. As I said, income inequality is lower than at any point under the Labour Government. People in full-time work on the national living wage have seen a £2,000 a year pay increase as a result of the national living wage and, of course, everybody in work has seen an improvement in their take-home pay as a result of the significant increases in the personal allowance that this Government committed to, and which this Government are delivering.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Tuesday 24th October 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Philip Hammond]

We are acutely aware that inflation has spiked, but the overwhelming majority of forecasters expect it to start to fall again in the new year. The spike in inflation has been driven primarily by the depreciation in the value of sterling last year, but I will take the hon. Gentleman’s comments on VAT as a representation for the Budget and will consider them carefully.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

T8. May I urge the Chancellor to reject the representations that we have just heard from the shadow Chancellor? Is it not the case that one cannot agree a price until one knows what one is paying for, and that only a fool would write a blank cheque with taxpayers’ money?

Economy and Jobs

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Thursday 29th June 2017 Commons Chamber

[Charlie Elphicke]

rose—

[Mr Hammond]

I will give way one more time, to the hon. Member for Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Angus Brendan MacNeil)—and then I will give way to a couple of my hon. Friends.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jeremy Quin]

rose—

[Charlie Elphicke]

rose—

[Mr Hammond]

I am happy to give way to my hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Jeremy Quin).

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Hammond]

As I have already said, it is clear that reducing the corporation tax rate has led to a flow of investment and the creation of millions of new jobs, which I welcome. That is the way forward for this country, not the obsolete 1970s policies of the Labour party.

[Charlie Elphicke]

The Chancellor is being incredibly generous in taking interventions. Obviously we will be leaving the European Union in two years’ time. He hopes for a transitional deal, and we all hope that it goes smoothly and well, most of all on the Dover frontline. Does he agree that it is important that Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and the Government are ready on day one for the challenge and for every eventuality?

[Mr Hammond]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We do not know what the outcome of our negotiations with the European Union will be, but we have to be prepared for every possible eventuality, particularly at the port of Dover. I hope that when hon. Members across the House look at the great repeal Bill, which will prepare us to deal with whatever situation we find ourselves in in March 2019, they will think carefully about that situation.

Class 4 National Insurance Contributions

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Wednesday 15th March 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

We know that the Scottish National party believes in higher taxes, because everyone earning more than £45,000 will be paying £314 a year more tax in Scotland next year than in England.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

I commend the Chancellor for his statement and urge him to take firm action on fake self-employment, which is tax dodging by big businesses that are shirking their responsibilities and should know better. Will he also consider the case for a wide-ranging reform for a new deal for the self-employed, not just on the tax side of the ledger, but in respect of workplace support, so that we could have fairness and a level playing field between different types of worker?

[Mr Hammond]

That is the purpose of the report that Matthew Taylor is writing to look at the differences in treatment as the economy changes shape. My hon. Friend is absolutely right that there are examples of employers egregiously forcing employees into bogus self-employment, but there are also much more complex cases—for example, where new digital platforms are allowing people to work in different ways. Are they employees; are they self-employed; are they something else in between? We need to ask those questions because, as the economy changes shape, this will become an increasingly important issue for us to address.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Tuesday 28th February 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

I will take the hon. Gentleman’s comments as a Budget submission, and I will pass them on to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

T6. Does the Chancellor share my concern about reports that billions of pounds in VAT and customs duties are not being accounted for? Will he look carefully at the role of fulfilment houses such as Amazon and eBay to ensure that we get the money that is due to the Exchequer?

Autumn Statement

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Wednesday 23rd November 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

No. The Prime Minister has been very clear that it remains her target to reduce immigration to the tens of thousands, but she has also been clear that it will take time to achieve. The OBR forecast stretches over a period of five years, and the Prime Minister is absolutely clear that this is a target that will be achieved over a longer timeframe in order to manage the impact on the economy.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

I congratulate the Chancellor on an excellent first and last autumn statement. May I draw his attention to page 40 of the Green Book at paragraph 4.35, which I welcome? It states:

“The fuel duty rate will remain frozen for the seventh successive year, saving motorists around £130 a year compared to what they would have been paying under the pre-2010 escalator.”

This is a good autumn statement for drivers.

[Mr Hammond]

I am grateful for my hon. Friend’s comments and I am glad he is pleased with the statement. I know that he takes a great interest in matters related to fuel duty and vehicle taxation, and I look forward to continuing to engage with him on those issues in the future.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Tuesday 19th July 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

We will look in the autumn statement at all sectors of the economy, and where we believe that additional fiscal support is necessary, we will announce appropriate measures.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

I welcome the Chancellor to his place. Does he agree that big business needs to change and that large multinational companies, including Amazon, Google and Starbucks, have a duty to put something back and pay off a debt to their fellow citizens, and a responsibility to pay their taxes?

[Mr Hammond]

Yes.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Thursday 10th March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

As my right hon. Friend the Minister of State said earlier, Sir Roy McNulty is conducting a review of value for money in the rail industry. One of his preliminary findings is that we need better alignment of interests between train operators and the infrastructure operator. Network Rail has responded to those recommendations, unprompted, by announcing that it will give greater autonomy to its regional route managing directors. I think that is a step in the right direction.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

On 23 March, the people of Dover will vote in a referendum on whether they want a people’s port big society change in Dover. If the people vote for the big society, will the Secretary of State help to implement it?

Winter Weather

Debate between Lord Hammond of Runnymede and Charlie Elphicke

Thursday 2nd December 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

The reality is that the problem on the ground is essentially transport-focused at this stage. Problems in other areas such as the health service are directly related to transport issues, so the Department for Transport has to take the lead. That is what we are doing. We are regularly meeting and communicating with the Highways Agency, train operators and airport operators to monitor the situation; we are doing so on an hourly basis. If it is necessary to convene a meeting of Cobra later today, we will do so.

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

Is it not right that we congratulate and encourage those people who are currently hard at work up and down the country clearing snow, and is it not also right that good neighbours should be encouraged to clear pavements outside their own homes?

[Mr Hammond]

On my hon. Friend’s last point, I remind the House that the Government published a code of practice on snow clearing on pavements. Members will remember that during the similar events of last winter earlier this year there was some suggestion that individuals were wary of clearing snow from pavements for fear that accidents caused on that stretch of pavement might lead to legal action. I hope we have dealt with that issue.