Speeches by Rigby.

“On the points made by the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Wyre Forest, we have listened very carefully indeed to the sector’s concerns and have responded. That is exactly why we are delaying the proposed changes to employee car ownership schemes until 2030. That is the reasoning behind the delay. The Government ar…”

“Clauses 14 and 15 double the maximum amount that a company can raise through the enterprise investment scheme and venture capital trusts scheme, as well as the gross assets limit for companies using the scheme. The VCT income tax relief will also be reduced from 30% to 20%. The changes made by clause 14 will mean that,…”

“A criticism of complexity has been made. The aim of these reforms is, of course, simplicity. I think it is recognised across the House that in matters of taxation, simplicity is better. We are ensuring that the legislation works as it is intended to do. The shadow Minister, the hon. Member for North West Norfolk, refer…”

“I am grateful to the whole Committee for their consideration of this matter—in particular the shadow Economic Secretary to the Treasury, the hon. Member for Wyre Forest (Mark Garnier). I share his vital commitment to continuous innovation in financial services. I would argue that what has made London and our financial …”

“I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) Regulations 2025. This statutory instrument delivers a comprehensive regime for the regulation of cryptoassets within the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 framework, meaning that cryptoassets will be…”

“I thank hon. Members for their contributions to the debate on this group of clauses. Before I respond to the specific points that have been raised, I will reflect briefly on the core purpose of the Bill. The Bill contains fair and necessary reforms to the tax system, which unfortunately have been ducked for far too lon…”

“It is a pleasure to open this second day of our Committee stage debate. Yesterday the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, my hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet (Dan Tomlinson), explained how the Bill gives effect to a Budget that took fair and responsible decisions to stabilise and strengthen the public financ…”

“The tax changes in the Bill disincentivise the most harmful forms of gambling. We have also introduced a statutory levy to pay for the prevention of some of those harms arising in the first place, and of treatment, and my hon. Friend makes an excellent point.”

“Clauses 83 to 85 and schedule 13 make changes to the gambling duties regime, to better reflect the modern gambling market and to raise more than £1 billion a year to support the lifting of the two-child benefit cap. I will first speak briefly to the broader context of the package, and I will then turn to each clause. G…”

“The right hon. Member raises a good point, as did my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central (Gareth Snell), about the illegal market. We are reassured by the fact that the illegal betting market in the UK is relatively small, representing between 2% and 9% of legal online market stakes. The Gambling Commissi…”

“I was talking about our new pro-growth licensing policy framework, which was announced in the Budget. If the hon. Member is referring specifically to business rates, as I think he might be, we have made it clear that we are continuing to talk to the sector about any support beyond the existing £4.3 billion support pack…”

“My hon. Friend makes a good point. NHS figures show that over 40% of gamblers who use online slots, bingo and casino games are considered at risk, compared with less than 15% of those who bet in person on horseracing, so that is an important contrast, and the NHS figures bear that out. Reform UK’s position on the two-c…”

“The hon. Member raises an important point. Before I commit to her that I will take that forward, I would like to check what discussions have already taken place. I hope she will accept that that is necessary from my point of view. Both the proposed new clauses focus on the impacts of the changes to the gambling duty an…”

“I am grateful to hon. Members for their contributions to today’s debate, and particularly to my hon. Friends the Members for Wolverhampton North East (Mrs Brackenridge), for Morecambe and Lunesdale (Lizzi Collinge) and for Halesowen (Alex Ballinger) for their heartfelt speeches in favour of these measures. I also note …”

“It was not me who had those engagements, but as I said, I confirm to the hon. Member that we are not proposing to make any changes to the treatment of free plays and free bets through the Bill, which I hope reassures her in that regard. I urge the Committee to reject new clauses 21 and 25 and agree that clauses 83 to 8…”

“As I said, employment is an important consideration that has been borne in mind for the purposes of this Bill, and there has been considerable engagement on all these issues. If the right hon. Member seeks further engagement, I am more than happy to have it. I was just about to conclude.I commend clauses 83 to 85 and s…”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that invitation. It is one that I will be taking up, as I would love to join her in that public house in her constituency. Importantly, continuing to freeze alcohol duty would primarily support cheaper alcohol in the off-trade—for instance, alcohol sold in shops and supermarkets—and …”

“We take all impacts on the hospitality sector and the pub sector extremely seriously, and this Government are proud to be backing British pubs across the piece. The changes we are making will help to ensure that, as a country, we live within our means, that we balance the books and that we properly fund the public serv…”

“I am pleased to open this session—the sixth and final session in Committee of the whole House on the Finance (No. 2) Bill—on clause 86, which concerns alcohol duty. This Government’s approach to alcohol duty is one of proportionality. Indeed, we are taking a fair and coherent approach to alcohol taxation as a whole. Th…”

“My hon. Friend raises an important point around jobs in the industry. He will be aware that employment in the gambling industry as a whole declined by around 20% between 2015 and 2023, so it is in gradual decline, and the trend predates this Bill. The jobs in his constituency are incredibly important, which is why the …”