Speeches by Tomlinson.

“We will always fight for the interests of British businesses and British farmers in the deals we strike with countries across the world.”

“The Finance (No. 2) Bill will be making its way through the House in the coming weeks, and once the Bill is law that change will come forward. If the hon. Gentleman meets his farmers on 7 April this year, the change will already be in place.”

“Yes, we did discuss this at Treasury questions and on Second Reading of the Finance Bill, and we will have time to discuss it in the Committee of the whole House next week too—and I can see from the number of Members wishing to speak now that there are many more questions coming so we may have many more hours today, Mr…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for the conversations that I know she has had with Ministers on this and other issues in recent weeks and months. Yes, we will continue to do all we can to support farmers and the farming industry in this country. That is part of why we are working hard on trade deals, to make sure we can improve…”

“I had the pleasure of meeting Mr Bradshaw last year. The NFU published statements—both at the time of the announcement and around the turn of the year—welcoming the changes that the Government have proposed. The hon. Gentleman asks about manifesto commitments. We were very clear in our manifesto that we would return ec…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his invitation. I will pass it on to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and will carefully consider it myself.”

“Earlier in the year, Members asked us about making these changes, and we have come forward with a revised proposal that includes a higher threshold. That is the right thing to do; it shows that we have listened to representations from the farming and business communities, as my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Sout…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his question, which has given me a chance to return to a question that the shadow Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Epping Forest (Dr Hudson), asked, but that I did not quite get to—he will have to forgive me. I will put on record for the House that the number of estates claiming only b…”

“No, we will not be considering the clawback proposals put forward. Instead, the Government have come forward with the change that was announced in December, which increases the threshold from £1 million to £2.5 million. It is worth remembering that the tax rate paid above the higher threshold is half the rate that anyo…”

“I recognise that many estates that would have been affected by the lower threshold, rather than having to pay additional inheritance tax, will now not be paying any inheritance tax at all. We have moved hundreds of estates out of having to pay additional inheritance tax. We have also reduced the tax liabilities for tho…”

“My hon. Friend is right to mention the disastrous trade deals that happened under the previous Government, and I thank him for giving me the chance to mention the trade deals that we have implemented, which seek to support businesses across the country to access more markets. I hope that, with our continued engagement …”

“I wish my hon. Friend’s constituents a happy new year. The Batters review, which was published just a few weeks ago, set out ideas that the Government can take forward to ensure that farming can be profitable and sustainable. I know that Ministers in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and across Gov…”

“If the Government had not made these changes in December, Opposition Members would have been standing here asking us to make those changes. We are coming forward with a revised position—we are increasing the threshold from £1 million to £2.5 million—and Members are criticising us for that change. We think it is the rig…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for her contribution, for the experience and expertise that she brings to the House as Chair of the Select Committee, and for the important work that she has done on this and other issues. The changes that we have made to this policy mean that it is now fair and balanced, and protects more farms.…”

“Of course, as the tax Minister—that is why I am at the Dispatch Box today, to address a point made earlier—I look continually at what improvements we can make to our tax system to ensure that we continue to support both rural and urban constituencies and communities up and down the country. If there are changes that th…”

“I thank my hon. Friend, too, for her work on the Select Committee, and for representing rural communities, including hers. My understanding is that Ministers in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Government are looking at what more we can do to ensure that farmers receive a fair price for th…”

“We will be going ahead with the changes that were set out in our manifesto and that have been announced recently. I think that that is the right thing for us to do.”

“Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for bringing the Front Benchers on both sides to heel at just the right time, before I make the closing remarks. It is a pleasure to close this Second Reading debate, and I thank all Members on both sides of the House for their contributions. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Dartfo…”

“I happily give way to my hon. Friend.”

“Some 4.4 million of the self-employed are also not able to save into salary sacrifice schemes; it is right that we make the scheme fairer for all. Let me continue to run through my numbers. Some 10 million people have signed up to a pension since auto-enrolment, which has limited the need for salary sacrifice. There ar…”