National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 8B

Parliament voted on 25 March 2025 to reject Lords Amendment 8B to the National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill, by 313 votes to 194. The amendment, originating in the House of Lords, sought to provide powers to exempt certain health and social care providers from the government's increase in employer National Insurance contributions. By passing this motion to disagree, the Commons overruled the Lords and kept the Bill in its original form, without carving out protections for providers such as GP practices, hospices, care homes, and NHS-commissioned dentists and pharmacists.

The vote matters because it determines whether a wide range of independent health and care providers will face the full cost of the government's employer National Insurance changes, which raise the rate from 13.8% to 15% and lower the threshold at which contributions begin from £9,100 to £5,000 per year. Unlike NHS England itself, which receives direct government compensation for these increased costs, providers operating as independent contractors to the NHS do not receive equivalent support. Critics argued this will force hospices, social care companies, GP surgeries, and pharmacies to cut staff or reduce services, potentially increasing pressure on hospitals and ultimately costing the Treasury more in the long run.

Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs voted unanimously for the government position, with 312 votes in favour collectively and no defections. Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, the SNP, the DUP, Reform UK, Plaid Cymru, and the Greens all voted against, with five Independents also voting no. One Independent voted with the government. The vote forms part of a prolonged back-and-forth between the two chambers, known as parliamentary ping-pong, with the Lords having revised and resubmitted amendments after the Commons rejected earlier versions the previous week. A closely related vote the same day on Lords Amendment 1B produced a near-identical result of 312 to 190, and similar patterns were seen in votes on the Non-Domestic Rating Bill later in March, suggesting the government is consistently using its Commons majority to override Lords modifications to its tax and fiscal legislation.