Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the report by the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed entitled The Self Employed 2021 Landscape Report, published on 31 January 2022, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the reduction in self-employment levels identified in that report.

The Government continues to monitor labour market trends and consider their wider implications. The UK labour market is currently performing strongly with high employment and low unemployment.

The Government recognises that many self-employed people have encountered challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic but has supported the self-employed through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) which paid out over £28 billion across all five grants to nearly 3 million self-employed individuals and has been one of the most generous schemes for the self-employed in the world.

The Government remains committed to ensuring that the UK continues to be one of the best places in the world to work and grow a business.