Taxation (Energy and Vehicles) Bill Committee: New Clause 2

Parliament rejected New Clause 2 to the Taxation (Energy and Vehicles) Bill on 1 July 2026, voting 80 ayes to 281 noes. The clause, proposed during the Committee stage of the whole House, would have required the Chancellor of the Exchequer to publish, within six months of the Act passing, a review of the approved mileage allowance payment rate as it applies to care workers who use their own vehicles for work. The new clause would have asked the Government to assess whether the current rate of 55 pence per mile adequately covers the costs incurred by paid care workers travelling between clients' homes, and to consider whether a higher rate should apply to those transporting specialist equipment or making three or more care visits in a single day. It would also have required the review to examine the relationship between mileage reimbursement and whether care workers are, in practice, receiving the National Living Wage once travel costs are taken into account. The clause was promoted by Liberal Democrat MP Daisy Cooper, who argued that care workers' work and costs are insufficiently recognised. The Government minister Dan Tomlinson acknowledged the importance of the issue but said the Government preferred to look at simplifying the process by which care workers can claim existing tax relief, rather than committing to a formal review. The vote divided almost entirely along government and opposition lines. No Labour or Labour and Co-operative Party MPs voted for the clause, with 280 combined voting against. The Liberal Democrats provided 56 of the 80 ayes. Smaller opposition parties including Plaid Cymru, the Green Party, the SNP, Reform UK, and two Your Party MPs also voted in favour, as did four independents and one Conservative. The large number of absent Conservative MPs (115 of 116) meant the party had little practical effect on the outcome.