Peter Fox
Group Sir Fynwy Torfaen · Welsh Conservative · Wales
“He shared some of the thriving things that are happening in Newport, and we hope that is replicated—and we know it is—around many towns in Wales. Luke said that businesses are facing a double whammy—quite right—as we've heard several times today, with NI and NDR. Ninety per cent plus of businesses are small businesses.”
“Mabon, can I thank you for your support and pointing out the importance of businesses in your constituency, and the effect those businesses have on your local economy and the community, and how they're the very fabric of things?”
“And I and my colleagues have made it clear today that we need to see a reinstatement of 75 per cent business rate relief for the hospitality, retail and leisure sectors here in Wales, or at least match the funding that is on offer, the support that's on offer, in England.”
“Diolch, Llywydd. A big thanks to everybody who contributed to this really important debate. Small Business Saturday is an important day where we will recognise the importance of supporting these family-run businesses.”
“And I thank Heledd for her intervention and pointing out how important it is that there is support for small businesses who were affected by floods and adverse weather. And thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for your commitment to making sure those businesses will be helped, and I'm sure they will be.”
“As we know, the main issue of a four-day working week is that it would not be possible to roll it out across every sector, meaning that some public sector workers would attain a privilege that would not be enjoyed by most private sector workers, and even many other front-line public sector workers.”
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“Cabinet Secretary, I hope that this Welsh Labour Government will choose to stand up against these damaging attacks on Welsh pensioners, Welsh businesses and the rural community, and call out this snatch-and-grab budget.”
“This Welsh Labour Government should stand up to Westminster to say, 'This is wrong', for the sake of our future generations and the sake of our food security. Finally, on the point of HS2 funding, clearly this budget hasn't allocated any extra money as a result of HS2 spending. So, can you confirm whether or not the Government will continue to support being short-changed, or will you join this Chamber and call for the billions of pounds that are owed to Wales as the Secretary of State for Wales, Jo Stevens, consistently called for? Cabinet Secretary, what is your assessment of the damage to Welsh businesses, of all descriptions, caused by the Chancellor's choice to level huge tax increases on them?”
“I want to turn to the matter of farms, even though it's been talked about here many times today. In Wales, farmers continue to get a rough time from Labour policy makers. [ Interruption .] I don't need to declare an interest: I'm a tenant. I listened to you, Cabinet Secretary, last night, on Sharp End , where you were trying to defend Labour's hit on family farms by withdrawing agricultural inheritance relief, but you must see—you must see—how damaging this will be for the industry. Farmers have very little cash resource, contrary to common belief, and the ability to pay huge inheritance tax, even over 10 years, even with the 20 per cent rather than 40 per cent—. The spin, and it clearly is spin, to suggest that most farms won't be affected shows how out of touch Labour are with rural reality.”
“Yes, Wales is getting consequentials, but much of this will need to be diverted towards the public sector to pay for the rise in national insurance. Cabinet Secretary, a specific question: with more than 330,000 employees in the public sector, what portion do you believe of the additional £1.7 billion will have to be made available to the public sector to cover these additional national insurance costs? We've heard so much about growth by Labour politicians here in Wales and in Westminster, but how can Welsh businesses grow when they pay the highest levels of business rates in Great Britain, while also paying more taxes on hiring new employees? Government can't create growth—they can only create conditions for growth. It's business that creates growth. The Chancellor has got things massively wrong.”
“The increased employers' national insurance on businesses here in Wales will negatively affect them; it will suppress economic growth, cost jobs and suppress wages—a direct impact on thousands of working people for years to come. It's clear the Government had choices. It was Keir Starmer's choice to axe winter fuel payments, and it was the Chancellor's choice to hike up taxes on business and working people, showing their true colours. Whilst there is an increase of budget consequentials for Wales, the Chancellor is playing a dangerous game by maxing out the country's credit card—fiscal fiddling to allow more borrowing. Roughly half of the additional spending has come about from a massive increase in borrowing, so this is not free money and will saddle our children and grandchildren with massive debts on into the future.”
“Can I thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for your statement? Now, this is the first Labour Government budget for 15 years, and while I hoped the time away from Government had done Labour some good, clearly it hasn't. Despite all the spin, this is the same old Labour: borrowing more, taxing more, taking more of other people's money. It's a clear fact—it's a clear fact—that Labour misled the public massively, and broke manifesto pledges, from the draconian attacks on pensioners to the hits on business, and don't forget the £40 billion hike in tax. Let's just pause on that for a second. Forty billion pounds' worth of tax. The statement mentions nothing about where the money was coming from; it talks about how it's going to be spent.”