Speeches by Tomlinson.

“In response to the shadow Minister’s question, the Government do consider the impact of each individual tax measure on businesses and consumers in the round with the others, at Budgets and in between them too. As a result, we have concluded that this is the right and proportionate way forward, to protect revenue and ma…”

“Over the months ahead, as a result of the action that this Government have taken to bring stability back to the economy, I look forward to seeing inflation return to 2% by the end of the year, as is forecast by the Bank of England. I thank the hon. Member for Maidenhead for bringing up the botched Brexit deal that the …”

“I thank Opposition Members for their contributions and for welcoming the Government’s decision on this matter at the Budget. I find it a bit tiresome that the Conservatives, when we consult, accuse us of consulting, and when we do not, accuse us of not consulting. It is right and proper, where possible, for the Governm…”

“The refining fire of a consultation process is something that I am happy to stand behind. On the shadow Minister’s important point about the decision to remove the dredging exemption, I have received correspondence from the sector on the issue and will continue to engage with it. The change is not scored in the Budget.…”

“I am sorry to tell the shadow Minister that this matter is not being legislated for in this Finance Bill; it will be for next year’s Finance Bill. Question put and agreed to. Clause 98 accordingly ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clause 99 Rate of aggregates levy Question proposed, That the clause stand part of the B…”

“Clause 99 makes changes to increase the rate of the aggregates levy in line with the retail prices index from 1 April 2026. Clause 100 and schedule 23 make changes to aggregates levy legislation in preparation for its replacement in Scotland with the Scottish aggregates tax. The changes made by clause 99 increase the r…”

“Clause 77 will make changes to ensure that the Motability scheme and other qualifying schemes provide value for money for the taxpayer while continuing to support disabled people. It will remove the VAT relief for top-up payments made to lease more expensive vehicles. Clause 78 ensures that insurance premium tax will a…”

“Clauses 101 to 104 encourage greater demand for recycled plastic, help create demand for chemically recycled material, and allow for a more level playing field for plastic recyclers, rewarding the recycling of waste plastic. This is supportive of the Government’s broader environmental goals. The plastic packaging tax w…”

“I thank the Opposition spokesman for his questions. May I put on record my thanks to the officials for the support that they have provided to me today, in my first appearance in a Bill Committee as a Minister? The hon. Member asked why the tax is increasing in line with CPI rather than RPI. All new tax measures introdu…”

“Of course there will be companies that will list under the current tax regime, and changing the tax would lead to lower revenues for the companies that would have listed anyway. We have to look at both sides of the coin. [Interruption.]”

“Clause 105 legislates for the new rates of the soft drinks industry levy to apply from 1 April 2026. It amends section 36(1) of the Finance Act 2017 to reflect the new rates of the levy to apply from 1 April 2026. Those rates are £2.08 and £2.78 per 10 litres of prepared drink, for the lower and higher bands respective…”

“Our approach to uprating taxes is plain to see for all the different approaches that we have taken. The Government set out their position on fuel duty, for example, and we have discussed many upratings today in Committee. The Government’s judgment in this specific circumstance was that uprating in line with inflation, …”

“The clause relates to trade defence. As set out in the trade strategy, the Government committed to strengthen the UK’s trade defence toolkit in response to an increasingly turbulent global trading environment. The clause supports those commitments and ensures that the Government can continue to respond to changes in th…”

“As with other measures that have been debated this week, for example on business rates, it seems that the Conservatives were just getting around to reform on the issue. Now they are in opposition, they seem to have developed a significant zeal for reform and tax cutting that they did not show at all when they were in g…”

“I thank the hon. Member for his comments. It is good to converse with a new Opposition spokesman and I look forward to more conversations and discussions with him—though I do not have favourites. I want to be really clear—and I am glad to have the chance to be so—that the UK will continue to champion the free and fair …”

“I will not expound on the detail of the clauses, but I will explain why the Government cannot accept the amendments. On amendment 44, any public disclosure of evidence before an investigation is formally launched risks undermining it. The formal initiation of an investigation is a defined procedural step, and once an i…”

“Clause 109 amends sections 20 and 20A of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 to update HMRC’s existing powers to require all ports to provide and fund customs infrastructure. Customs infrastructure is essential to protecting the UK by ensuring that risk-based checks on goods entering and leaving the country can …”

“I am glad that the hon. Member for Maidenhead is aware of the answer to the written parliamentary question. I have also responded in writing to Members who have written to me about this issue, and the rationale has been set out in that correspondence. Question put and agreed to. Clause 81 accordingly ordered to stand p…”

“Clause 110 will make changes to the rates charged to businesses under the economic crime (anti-money laundering) levy from April 2026. The changes will increase the revenue raised each year by the levy by £110 million from 2027-28 onwards. The levy was introduced to provide a long-term, sustainable source of funding fo…”

“On competitiveness, the Government of course do not place any additional burdens on businesses lightly, but reducing economic crime helps the good functioning of the UK economy and our competitiveness, so we think that this is a proportionate change. The shadow Minister is right to identify that there are significant c…”