Speeches by Tomlinson.

“I hope the microphone picked that up. We will make further announcements this afternoon specifically focused on pubs, but I understand that there are businesses across the economy that will have seen increases in their rateable values since the pandemic. That is precisely why we have stepped in with our support package…”

“The definition of “pubs” that is used for the changes that have been announced today is the same one that was used when the previous Government implemented a relief. I believe that that was in 2017, so it is a long-standing definition. I encourage the hon. Member to find that on the gov.uk website and send it to the re…”

“That is a really important point. There are many independent pubs up and down the country, as well as bigger chain pubs, and it is right that the support that the Government are bringing forward will support both. Around 75%—definitely above 70%—of independents and chains will receive support this year, ensuring that t…”

“It is not for me to tell the devolved Administrations how to spend their money, but if the right hon. Gentleman writes to me, I will be happy to write back to him with the details of the consequentials following the decision set out today.”

“My hon. Friend is a powerful and strong advocate both for the businesses in his constituency and for the hospitality sector more broadly. I thank him for our conversations; I think we spoke before Christmas as well as in recent weeks. I will of course continue to engage with him and the hospitality sector on tax issues…”

“Over and over again, Conservative Members profess to be paragons of fiscal virtue, yet stand up in this place and say they want to cut taxation, which in effect means more and more borrowing. We have in the past seen the problems caused by Conservative Governments who let borrowing run out of control, cause interest ra…”

“I am always happy to look at and respond to the correspondence I receive from hon. Members. I am aware of the issue my hon. Friend raises, which she has been consistently raising in this House. We came forward at the Budget with a significant package of support, and many small and independent businesses are small enoug…”

“We want to work with the hotel sector on the review I have announced today. We will make sure it reports in time to be implemented by the Valuation Office Agency by the date of the next revaluation. For hotels at the very far end of the distribution of changes in rateable value—with an increase that large, I believe th…”

“Yes, we will continue to work with pubs, because we do value them. I want to be clear, however, that we value all of the businesses on the high street. We value our hospitality businesses, our retail businesses and those that work in leisure and soft play, which I believe was mentioned earlier. All the different busine…”

“I am sure that the consequentials and their implications will be set out as soon as is practically possible.”

“I very much agree with my hon. Friend. What happened in the past is in stark contrast to the reform of our business rates system under our Government. We have set out long-term differences in the multipliers—also known as the tax rates—faced by high-street businesses and those faced by the online giants and the largest…”

“Because of the interventions announced today, the total business rates bill for pubs will fall over the coming years. As the hon. Member mentions, we are giving individual pubs a 15% reduction on their new bills, and then a real-terms freeze for the next two years. That is a significant intervention because of the sign…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his advocacy on behalf of the pubs and businesses in his constituency. Concerns have been raised about the methodology. We have looked into that in recent weeks, and we think it is right to review it. That review will take place in the coming months. It will definitely report in time for the …”

“We have set out a package of support for hotels and all other businesses. It is worth around £2 billion this year and £4 billion over the next three years. If there are hotels in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency that are facing significant increases in their rateable values this year, the increases in their bills will…”

“I would be happy to discuss that matter with my hon. Friend. Indoor play is a really valuable and growing part of our economy, but there are challenges. With more free childcare, it may be that fewer people are going in during the day, and I know that many indoor play centres have seen increases in their rateable value…”

“We have changed the tax rates, the multipliers, within the system so that a typical high street business may now pay 38p in the pound and an online retail giant may pay 51p in the pound on their rateable values. That is a significant underlying reform to the tax system that is here for good.”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his engagement, persistence and advocacy on behalf of the businesses in his constituency. I know that he has had many conversations with businesses in his constituency, and he has been able to feed them directly to me as the Minister with responsibility for tax. I am sure that we will continu…”

“The Barnett consequentials of this decision will be set out in the usual way and through the usual process.”

“Because of the concerns around the methodology to value hotels, today we have announced that we will review that methodology so that, in time for the next revaluation, hotels can have a methodology that more appropriately works for their sector. The hon. Gentleman is right to point out that hotels have seen some of the…”

“I will continue to keep those important cultural and social assets in mind as we work on our policy for supporting businesses across the country.”