Meetings

NDM8748 Welsh Conservatives Debate - Small business and taxation

This page gives details of any meetings held which will, or did, discuss the matter, and includes links to the relevant Papers, Agendas and Minutes.

Note: Meeting Agenda can change at short notice. Particularly where future meeting dates are indicated more than a week in advance. Please check before planning to attend a Committee Meeting that the item you are interested in has not been moved.

Meeting: 27/11/2024 - Plenary - Sixth Senedd (Item 9)

Welsh Conservatives Debate - Small businesses and taxation

NDM8748 Darren Millar (Clwyd West)

To propose that the Senedd:

1. Notes that Small Business Saturday will take place on 7 December 2024.

2. Recognises the vital contribution that small businesses make in creating jobs, supporting  communities and developing local economies across Wales.

3. Believes that the UK Labour Government has broken a manifesto commitment by raising national insurance contributions and notes that the British Retail Consortium and 79 prominent retail leaders have indicated that the increase will lead to higher prices, job losses, and damage investment.

4. Calls on the Welsh Government to:

a) make urgent representations to the UK Government to reverse an increase in national insurance contributions; and

b) reinstate business rates relief to 75 per cent for the retail, hospitality and leisure sector to support small businesses and protect jobs.

The following amendment was tabled:

Amendment 1 Jane Hutt (Vale of Glamorgan)

Delete all after point 2 and replace with:

Notes the UK Government’s decision to increase employer national insurance contributions in the autumn budget in order to assist in stabilising the nation's finances.

Recognises additional non-domestic rates relief has been available to retail, leisure and hospitality businesses for five successive years, at a cost of £1 billion, alongside the Welsh Government’s annual £250m package of permanent rates reliefs.

Minutes:

The item started at 17.06

Voting on the motion and amendments under this item was deferred until Voting Time.

A vote was taken on the motion without amendment:

NDM8748 Darren Millar (Clwyd West)

To propose that the Senedd:

1. Notes that Small Business Saturday will take place on 7 December 2024.

2. Recognises the vital contribution that small businesses make in creating jobs, supporting  communities and developing local economies across Wales.

3. Believes that the UK Labour Government has broken a manifesto commitment by raising national insurance contributions and notes that the British Retail Consortium and 79 prominent retail leaders have indicated that the increase will lead to higher prices, job losses, and damage investment.

4. Calls on the Welsh Government to:

a) make urgent representations to the UK Government to reverse an increase in national insurance contributions; and

b) reinstate business rates relief to 75 per cent for the retail, hospitality and leisure sector to support small businesses and protect jobs.

For

Abstain

Against

Total

24

0

26

50

The motion without amendment was not agreed.

The following amendment was tabled:

Amendment 1 Jane Hutt (Vale of Glamorgan)

Delete all after point 2 and replace with:

Notes the UK Government’s decision to increase employer national insurance contributions in the autumn budget in order to assist in stabilising the nation's finances.

Recognises additional non-domestic rates relief has been available to retail, leisure and hospitality businesses for five successive years, at a cost of £1 billion, alongside the Welsh Government’s annual £250m package of permanent rates reliefs.

A vote was taken on amendment 1:

For

Abstain

Against

Total

26

0

24

50

Amendment 1 was agreed.

A vote was taken on the motion as amended:

To propose that the Senedd:

1. Notes that Small Business Saturday will take place on 7 December 2024.

2. Recognises the vital contribution that small businesses make in creating jobs, supporting  communities and developing local economies across Wales.

3. Notes the UK Government’s decision to increase employer national insurance contributions in the autumn budget in order to assist in stabilising the nation's finances.

4. Recognises additional non-domestic rates relief has been available to retail, leisure and hospitality businesses for five successive years, at a cost of £1 billion, alongside the Welsh Government’s annual £250m package of permanent rates reliefs.

For

Abstain

Against

Total

26

0

24

50

The motion as amended was agreed.