Angus MacDonald MP: speeches

Speeches

• 25 Feb 2025 · Maternity Services · Hansard source

  More

  I am proud to represent Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire. My colleague, my hon. Friend the Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Jamie Stone), could not be here, but, on the subject of centralisation, our nearest maternity hospital is in Inverness, which is four hours each way from parts of Sutherland, Argyll, and the Isle of Eigg—around Muck, which I am sure the hon. Member is, or should be, familiar with. I wonder whether the hon. Member could support our case that centralisation is becoming a real problem for expectant mothers, who suffer enormous complications because of distance, given that smaller regional hospitals are no longer providing maternity care?

• 12 Feb 2025 · Support for the Scotch Whisky Industry · Hansard source

  More

  The share price of Diageo is down by two thirds, that of Pernod Ricard has halved—the whisky industry is in a difficult place. In the Budget, the duty added to a normal bottle was 32p, taking the total duty on a bottle of spirits up to £9.18. Does the Minister not think that we are plucking the golden goose once too often?

• 11 Feb 2025 · Cost of Energy · Hansard source

  More

  I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Bath (Wera Hobhouse) on securing this important debate. Much of what I was going to say has been mentioned, but I want to reiterate a few things. How can it be that households on renewable electricity pay four times as much as those who get fossil fuel gas? That is inappropriate, not least because the cost of electricity generation from onshore wind was one third of the cost of generating electricity from fossil fuels, yet electricity bills remain nearly four times the price of mains gas. To put that into perspective, my parliamentary flat in London, which runs on mains gas, costs 5.8p per kilowatt-hour to heat, while my home in the highlands costs 23.7p. That premium is paid not just in the highlands, but across the countryside and in rural Britain, and in high-rise properties throughout cities across Great Britain. It is an enormous and painful gap. We all believe that net zero is the way ahead—we all support that—but we do not think that the current pricing is just. In England, the level of fuel poverty is 13%, and as the hon. Member for Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey (Graham Leadbitter) said, it is much higher in the highlands at 47%. We have a dramatic problem with fuel poverty in the north of Scotland. In 2021, an estimated 16% of households that used gas for heating were classified as being in fuel poverty, and 41% of those who required electricity. There is a clear link between fuel poverty and lack of access to mains gas. That damages business as well: a hotel in rural Britain is paying £80,000 if it is using gas, but it would cost only £25,000 at most in a city for the same amount of heat. If the hotel was in the United States, the same amount of heat would cost only £10,000. We have touched on the coupling of renewable energy and gas, and I do not think anybody would disagree that they need to be decoupled. I am sure that the Minister will talk about that. We have also touched on the environmental surcharges that are put on the electricity price, so 20% or more of an electricity bill, but just a fraction of a gas bill, is an environmental tariff. Ironically, it is people using renewable energy who are shouldering those environmental charges, not those using fossil fuels—mains gas. I am glad that we have had this debate. I hope that the Minister will give an idea of how the enormous injustice of environmental charges, the standing charges and all the excess charges on renewables can be removed to balance things out with people who are relying on gas.

• 11 Feb 2025 · Cost of Energy · Hansard source

  More

  Would the Minister spare a minute to talk about community benefits?

• 11 Feb 2025 · Cost of Energy · Hansard source

  More

  Thank you very much.

• 5 Feb 2025 · Closure of High Street Services: Rural Areas · Hansard source

  More

  Will the Minister allow me to intervene?

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  LPG is not the issue; electricity, along with kerosene, is largely the issue. Very few people use LPG to heat their properties or businesses. It is electricity where the taxes are. I would be delighted to share information; I am doing a big thing about it shortly, so I have done a lot of research.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  I support what the shadow Minister said, almost word for word. My career has been in business, and in my two days sitting in the Committee, I have been appalled by what seems to be tax increase upon tax increase. Small and medium-sized businesses across the UK are on their knees and we have done a catastrophic job since the Budget in ruining things for businesses.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  As always, I speak on behalf of the highland industries. In rural areas, only electricity and kerosene are available; mains gas is not. Electricity users pay four times more for their energy than mains gas users, so a hotel on the island of Skye may pay £80,000, whereas one in a city may pay £20,000. That causes enormous issues for people in the windiest, coldest, darkest part of Great Britain. The reason for the big disparity is that the tariffs and taxes are largely on electricity, rather than gas, and of course electricity is largely renewable. In my constituency, people can see wind farms out of their window, yet we still pay four times more for our energy than people in cities. Will the Minister elaborate on what could be done to make us more competitive?

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  Yes. Question put, That the amendment be made.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  I have finished my remarks.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  The amendment would mean the relevant rate of duty would be unchanged from last year. I am one of the few MPs from Scotland on the Committee, but I am sure I am not alone in understanding the vital importance of the Scotch whisky industry not just to Scotland but to the UK economy. However, it bears repeating just how significant the industry is, and I would like to highlight a few key statistics. Scotland is home to the production of 70% of UK spirits—whisky, gin and vodka. In 2023, Scotch whisky accounted for 74% of Scotland’s food and drink exports, and the industry employed 41,000 people in Scotland and an additional 25,000 throughout the UK. The Prime Minister himself recognised the importance of the industry. He went to the InchDairnie distillery in November 2023, and afterwards tweeted: “Labour will put growth at the heart of our government and back Scotch producers to the hilt.” The hon. Member for West Dunbartonshire (Douglas McAllister) echoed this sentiment when he co-signed a letter to the Chancellor prior to the Budget, urging her to: “Back one of our great industries, undo the damage of last year’s duty increase, and allow Scotch Whisky to deliver for the economy.” Despite those commitments, the 2024 autumn Budget fails to deliver the support that the Scotch whisky industry so urgently needs. A new survey reveals that 43% of 18 to 34-year-olds have given up drinking alcohol entirely. The share prices of the biggest two spirit companies halved over the past year. The Bill proposes 1p off a pint of beer, which I think we can all agree is a bit of a stunt, while increasing the tax on spirits by 32p, with a related VAT increase of 6p. That means that the duty is £9.18 on a standard bottle of vodka, gin or Scotch whisky. Over the past 16 years, the duty on spirits has doubled. I am concerned, and so are many others, that we are plucking the golden goose one time too many. UK alcohol duty is the highest in the G7. A double measure of spirits is taxed four times more than the average-strength pint of cider in pubs, even when the cider contains more alcohol. Effectively, we are taxing whisky, gin and vodka four times as much. What is worse, this punitive duty does not even deliver more revenue for the Treasury. This is an important point. Last year, the previous Government increased the duty on spirits by 10.1%, but according to HMRC the revenue from the duty fell by £237 million in the following 17 months. That clearly demonstrates that higher taxes on Scotch and spirits do not lead to higher revenue. The increase was forecast to bring in £800 million. Revenue from the duty has therefore fallen dramatically. I understand that in recent years alcohol duty has risen in line with inflation under the new system. However, freezing it in this Budget would send a clear message that the Government stand behind one of our greatest industries. The troubled hospitality industry and the Scotch whisky industry do not need hollow words of support: they need meaningful action. I urge the Government to freeze alcohol duty on Scotch whisky and other spirits, and keep their promise. The Prime Minister said that we need to “back Scotch producers to the hilt.” Let us give this industry the angels’ share that it deserves.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  Will the Minister comment on whether, when the Government fix all these additional taxes, they take into account what happens in Scotland, where many in the hospitality industry do not get business rate relief? We are getting it twice on exactly the same issue.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  I do not have a great deal to add. I did miss out, when we declared our interests earlier, the fact that I own a pub, which hon. Members are very welcome to visit when they are next in Fort William—do not all rush at once. It never rains there. I want to come back, briefly, to the 1p a pint reduction that we were promised. The whole hospitality industry and beer industry have come together to agree that that is a stunt, and that that 1p will not be passed on to the customer. It is just not relative at all, because the reduction in business property relief and the national insurance and minimum wage increases effectively mean that the cost to the hospitality industry is going through the roof. The Minister knows that perfectly well, but he still continues to trot out his line. On the whisky industry, I am not sure that account has been taken of the potential tariffs. We talk about exports being very strong, but they are not actually very strong at the moment. Lastly, on tax overall, when I make a submission to Scottish Government Ministers about the tax on hospitality, the whisky industry and so on, they all blame Westminster, but when I speak to Westminster Ministers about it, they all blame Scotland. The net result is that industries such as hospitality in Scotland are suffering from both sides, and that is simply not fair.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  In that case, I will not, Ms Vaz.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  I beg to move amendment 66, in clause 63, page 68, line 10, leave out “£32.79” and insert “£31.64”.

• 30 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Third sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  May I intervene?

• 28 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  Will the Minister consider the fact that the increase in national insurance has harmed many companies that have really struggled? An increase in the top rate of income tax or capital gains tax would at least have hit organisations that are making proper profits and proper money.

• 28 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  My point was really about the cumulative effect of many different taxes and restrictions making it more and more difficult for people in the letting business, which is crucial to the economy of tourist areas.

• 28 Jan 2025 · Finance Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

  More

  Did the Minister consider the different legislation in Scotland, where we have short-term letting licences, visitor tax and a whole load of extra legislation coming in, which is making it difficult and reducing the amount of holiday letting available? How relevant is the proposal for Scotland?

• 23 Jan 2025 · High Streets: Autumn Budget 2024 · Hansard source

  More

  I wonder whether the Minister will consider what I am about to say. I have been asked to go to the Isle of Skye on Saturday for a crisis meeting. There is a group of hotels, which are family-run businesses, not big multinationals, and they face an awful combination of increases across the board, including heating price increases. Their No. 1 issue is national insurance contributions and minimum wage costs. They think that, on average, their costs will go up by between £40,000 and £70,000. They are in a very poor state indeed. Can the Minister give me any encouragement that I could pass on to them on her behalf?

• 23 Jan 2025 · High Streets: Autumn Budget 2024 · Hansard source

  More

  Will the Minister say why taxes were put on poor, struggling organisations, such as high-street shops and hotels, rather than the massive online businesses that are emptying our high streets? Why did she not consider imposing a higher rate of corporation tax or income tax, rather than hitting the poorest businesses in our society?

• 22 Jan 2025 · Public Services: Rural Areas · Hansard source

  More

  Will the Minister bear in mind the importance of community benefits from renewables? The whole of the highlands is covered in turbines, which are built overseas and often owned overseas. We have the highest level of fuel poverty in Britain, and renewables offer the only chance for rural Britain to level up financially that we will see in our lifetimes. I greatly fear that the opportunity will pass us by.

• 14 Jan 2025 · Coastguard Helicopter Services · Hansard source

  More

  Thank you for allowing me to speak, Ms Furniss. I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr Carmichael) on securing this debate. He has long campaigned on this issue and that has won him a lot of gratitude from people in Northern Ireland and across Scotland and, indeed, the UK as a whole. I have considerable personal gratitude to the search and rescue helicopter service. Ten years ago, my wife fell off a hill while wearing crampons and using an ice axe, and broke everything in her body. I was in London and got a call from somebody to say, “Your wife is lying on the rocks, a few hundred feet down.” I was so concerned that I ran a situations vacant ad in The Oban Times , but luckily it was not needed because of the rescue of my wife by the search and rescue helicopter. My father was involved in Glencoe Mountain Rescue. He always says that the advent of search and rescue helicopters was probably the biggest change in the history of saving people in the mountains. I am pleased to speak in this debate as my constituency includes Inverness, home to one of the top 10 search and rescue helicopter operations in the UK. Those centres, and the incredible teams who staff them, are an essential part of our emergency service infrastructure. Their stability and effectiveness are not only important but essential, as I know to my benefit. Some people in the Chamber might not be aware of the scale of it. It is a £1.6 billion, 10-year programme, so it is a big contract. The UK search and rescue service provides 18 helicopters and six fixed-wing planes, based in 10 locations, from Newquay up to Sumburgh. There are two aircraft in each base. As my right hon. Friend the Member for Orkney and Shetland mentioned, when the leaked plans to increase the emergency response time for rescue helicopters based at Sumburgh emerged, back in 2023, he acted swiftly and decisively. His efforts paid off as the then Minister, Guy Opperman, stated that the changes would not happen for many years to come, and that “all four current helicopter bases in Scotland will remain open.” —[ Official Report , 22 November 2023; Vol. 741, c. 127.] Hopefully, the new Government will ensure that we continue to hold on firm on that. Quick responses to immediate problems are vital, but what is even more important is addressing the long-term decline in the services before they reach a crisis point. We need to ensure that the service level commitments do not slip. We have been made aware that there is potential for slippage in the contract. Most people will never need a search and rescue service. However, if they do need one, nothing else will do.

• 14 Jan 2025 · Coastguard Helicopter Services · Hansard source

  More

  I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention. In the year ending March 2024, coastguard search and rescue helicopters rescued 1,425 people. That figure highlights the sheer scale of their contribution to public safety. From the Inverness base in my constituency alone, there were 321 operations—almost one a day—making it the third busiest in the UK. As a party, the Liberal Democrats are keeping a firm eye on this issue. One of the things we are concerned about is progress on extending the helipad safe zones at hospitals, which I know has become quite a big issue; I hope the Minister will mention that when he addresses us. Before I conclude, I reiterate the point made my right hon. Friend the Member for Orkney and Shetland. In May 2024, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport stated that the Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s analysis of search and rescue demand would be published by the end of 2024. Clearly, we are well past that now. I hope the Minister will address that in his closing remarks and keep an eagle eye on the search and rescue contract and its performance. It matters a great deal to people who live in the maritime and rural areas of Great Britain.