Tuesday Volume 658 9 April 2019 No. 286 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Tuesday 9 April 2019 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2019 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 157 9 APRIL 2019 158 Priti Patel (Witham) (Con): The freeze in fuel duty House of Commons has helped hauliers across Essex, but of course there is another measure that could help our hauliers and businesses even more, which would be to dual the A120. Will my Tuesday 9 April 2019 right hon. Friend have a word with the Department for Transport to see how we can use the taxes raised to get The House met at half-past Eleven o’clock this road dualled? Mr Hammond: Never a Treasury questions goes by PRAYERS without my right hon. Friend raising the dualling of the A120. Of course we have a very large fund available, [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] with £25.3 billion for strategic roads, and I am sure my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport is well aware of the compelling arguments in favour of Oral Answers to Questions dualling the A120. Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP): What tax breaks is the Chancellor putting in place so that hauliers are able TREASURY to continue through the uncertainty on contracts during the transition period as we leave Europe? The Chancellor of the Exchequer was asked— Mr Hammond: As I have already mentioned, hauliers have benefited very significantly from the freeze in fuel Fuel Duty: Hauliers duty, but the hon. Gentleman asks a wider question. If we were to find ourselves leaving the European Union 1. Maggie Throup (Erewash) (Con): What estimate he without a deal—a situation that I sincerely hope will has made of the average annual savings to hauliers from not arise—we have a full range of tools available to us, freezing the level of fuel duty since 2010. [910295] including all the usual tools of fiscal policy. I have The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr Philip Hammond): headroom within the fiscal rules of just under £27 billion, Fuel duty has been frozen for nine consecutive years, as I set out at the spring statement, and the Government saving money for all those who regularly use our roads. will work closely with the Bank of England in those I can confirm that the average road haulier has saved circumstances to ensure that fiscal and monetary policy £23,300 per vehicle on fuel since 2010 compared with are used to support the UK economy. the pre-2010 escalator plan. However, the benefits to hauliers and motorists of freezing fuel duty must be Several hon. Members rose— balanced against the cost to the Exchequer in the context of our need to fund our public services, so we continue Mr Speaker: As vice-chair of the all-party parliamentary to keep it under review. group on fair fuel for UK motorists and UK hauliers, the voice of Kirstene Hair must be heard. Maggie Throup: Hauliers have definitely been a major beneficiary of the duty freeze, but will my right hon. Kirstene Hair (Angus) (Con): Thank you, Mr Speaker. Friend consider helping the industry further by investing Of course, hauliers and motorists warmly welcome the in a new motorway junction between junctions 25 and fuel duty freeze, but they are concerned about the 26 of the M1 to help improve connectivity throughout disparity in fuel costs across the country and the impact the east midlands? of the cost of oil—they are not seeing that at the pumps. Will the Chancellor,or a member of his ministerial Mr Hammond: From 2020, all English road tax will team, meet me to discuss an independent fuel price be spent on our roads via a dedicated national roads regulator and to see whether we can sort out these fund—that will be £28.8 billion between 2020 and 2025, issues? including £25.3 billion for strategic roads. We have spent £120 million on the recently opened smart motorway Mr Hammond: We have a marketplace in fuel in this between junctions 23a and 25 of the M1, which will country, but I understand my hon. Friend’s point. I am reduce congestion, but we will, of course, continue to sure the Exchequer Secretary would be very happy to take into account the need for connectivity in planning meet her to discuss it. future roads investment in the east midlands. Mr Speaker: When she is not busy vice-chairing the Daniel Zeichner (Cambridge) (Lab): The Chancellor all-party group. says this needs to be balanced against the needs of the Exchequer, but what about the needs of the environment? Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op): I What effects have we seen during the period of the chair Labour’s Back-Bench environment, food and rural freeze, with the failure to tackle emissions and with the affairs committee. road transport sector in particular failing compared with others? The Chancellor always impresses me. He is thoughtful, and I like him a lot. He is thoughtful on Europe and on Mr Hammond: We have an extremely good track the environment, but can I take him back to what my record on decarbonising our economy. We have set hon. Friend the Member for Cambridge (Daniel Zeichner) extremely ambitious targets, and we are ahead of all our said? Is it not about time we had a modern taxation significant competitors in delivering them. system that encourages sustainable transport? We are 159 Oral Answers 9 APRIL 2019 Oral Answers 160 killing kids and poisoning pregnant women. We know exit. The evidence we see shows that, if we can secure a that air pollution is of the utmost importance. I appeal negotiated exit, there is a great deal of business investment to the Chancellor’s radical instinct: let us have a new waiting to go back into the economy. This year could form of sustainable taxation. turn out to be a strong one for the British economy, if only we can secure the deal. Mr Hammond: I am bemused by the disappearance of Mr Angry, who I am quite used to dealing with at the Sir Vince Cable (Twickenham) (LD): Does the Treasury Dispatch Box. As I said earlier, we have a good track acknowledge the wisdom in the letter that the Engineering record on decarbonisation and addressing air quality Employers’Federation, which represents 20,000 companies challenges. We provide substantial support for ultra low and 1 million workers, sent to the Prime Minister yesterday? emission vehicles, we have a highly differentiated vehicle It spoke of the renaissance of manufacturing in the excise duty and company car tax regime, which encourages earlier part of the decade, but is now expressing despair the purchase of the cleanest and most efficient vehicles, and is asking simply for the revocation of article 50. and we will go on seeking to change behaviour through a carefully constructed tax system. Robert Jenrick: If the right hon. Gentleman wants to support this country’s manufacturing sector, he and his Manufacturing Output Levels colleagues should support a deal so we can leave the European Union in an orderly fashion. We are taking a 2. Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab): number of important steps to support manufacturing, What recent assessment the Government have made of including increasing the annual investment allowance trends in the level of manufacturing output. [910296] from £200,000 a year to £1 million, making research and development tax credits more generous, and backing The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (Robert schemes such as “Make Smarter”, which help the Jenrick): Manufacturing output has grown by 8.3% manufacturing sector to embrace automation and digital since the start of 2010, having fallen sharply as a result technology and move forward with confidence. of the financial crisis. The manufacturing sector has seen productivity increase more than three times faster Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con): Can the Minister than the UK economy as a whole over the past 10 years. confirm that, despite the Brexit uncertainty, Britain It accounts for almost half of UK exports, and directly remains the second best country in the whole world for employs 2.6 million people. foreign direct investment? Chi Onwurah: According to Make UK, we now have Robert Jenrick: I can confirm that. The UK remains the highest level of manufacturing stockpiling of any the European leader for foreign direct investment, venture country in the G7 ever. The chamber of commerce tells capital investment and tech investment. Even in me that, in the north-east, stockpiling is putting huge manufacturing, which is under a certain degree of strain, pressure on warehousing and cash flow. That is a direct the UK remains the ninth largest manufacturing nation consequence of Brexit uncertainty. What additional in the world. support will the Minister offer to manufacturers? I asked a similar question of the Brexit Minister last week, and he did not seem to know what I was talking Peter Dowd (Bootle) (Lab): “Strain” is not the word. about. Will the Minister acknowledge the link between In the real world, production and manufacturing output manufacturing output, stockpiling, cash flow and financial remained 6.8% and 2.7% lower respectively in the three viability? months to January 2019, compared with pre-downturn GDP in the first quarter of 2008. After nine years of Robert Jenrick: My right hon. Friend the Chancellor policy failure, should the Chancellor and his team not and other Treasury Ministers are working with the stop throwing spanners in the manufacturing works banks, which tell us that they are making funds available and instead oil the machine? to businesses that need support as their cash flow is under pressure and need working capital in the months Robert Jenrick: Not at all.