Oral Answers to Questions

Thérèse Coffey Excerpts

Tuesday 11th March 2014 Commons Chamber

The Chancellor of the Exchequer was asked—

[Dr Thérèse Coffey (Suffolk Coastal) (Con)]

1. What fiscal measures he plans to introduce to support young people into work.

[The Chief Secretary to the Treasury (Danny Alexander)]

The Chancellor of the Exchequer is at ECOFIN and I have been asked to reply.

Youth unemployment is falling and the number of young people on jobseeker’s allowance is 120,000 lower than in May 2010. No young person should be left behind in the recovery. That is why we have delivered 1.6 million apprenticeship starts so far this Parliament. We will abolish national insurance contributions for under-21s, which will help to support jobs for almost 1.5 million young people, and we are supporting up to half a million young people into education and employment through the Youth Contract.

[Dr Coffey]

I welcome the announcement in the autumn statement on the employers’ national insurance holiday for under-21s, which will be a big boost for many businesses in coastal towns such as those in Suffolk Coastal, and for pubs across the country, which regularly employ young people. Has my right hon. Friend estimated what impact the measure will have on youth unemployment?

[Danny Alexander]

We think the policy will have a significant impact. That is also the view of business organisations, which have warmly welcomed it. With the abolition of employer NICs for under-21s, it will become more than £500 cheaper to employ an under 21-year-old earning £12,000 a year, and more than £1,000 cheaper to employ an under 21-year-old earning £16,000 a year. Of course, employment is driven by a range of factors, but the wide welcome the measure has had suggests it will have a significant impact on employment.

--- Later in debate ---

[Danny Alexander]

I warmly welcome what the hon. Gentleman is doing to encourage employers in his constituency to offer work experience. The evidence of this Government’s work experience programme is that work experience is more effective than the future jobs fund and a great deal cheaper to deliver, so it is more cost-effective. He is on the right track in what he is doing in his constituency; his Front Benchers are on the wrong track.

[Dr Thérèse Coffey (Suffolk Coastal) (Con)]

T7. A few weeks ago, I joined my hon. Friends the Members for Harlow (Robert Halfon), for Northampton South (Mr Binley) and for Waveney (Peter Aldous) in presenting to the Chancellor a Boost Bingo petition with over 300,000 signatures, calling for a cut in bingo duty. [Hon. Members: “House!”] Will the Minister give to those who, day in, day out, enjoy bingo—including those who like to shout “House!”—comfort from this House that their concerns are being addressed in the forthcoming Budget?

[The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (Mr David Gauke)]

At this point in the year, all I can say to my hon. Friend is, “Let me take that as a further Budget submission.”