Liberal Democrats will vote against NICs rise to protect small businesses

Ahead of the vote to raise employers’ National Insurance today (3rd December), Liberal Democrat Scottish Affairs spokesperson Christine Jardine MP said: 

“This government rightly says that its big economic mission is to drive up growth but this tax rise will undermine growth, not unleash it.  

“Across Scotland, small businesses are the engine of growth but these taxes will make it more expensive for them to employ people and harder to expand.

“Health and wealth are two sides of the same coin but for community health providers like pharmacies, GPs and our care sector, it will pile on the cost pressure, leaving patients to suffer.

“There is no doubt the Conservatives left an enormous mess but this is not the way to fix it. We have said time and again that the government should have looked to the big banks and social media giants to fund our NHS and other vital public services.

“That’s why we Liberal Democrats have tabled an amendment to block these self-defeating tax rises, and why we’ll vote against these tax plans today.”