Finance (No. 2) Bill — Clause 9 — Taxation — Living Wage — Unions — Large Digital Services Companies — 19 Apr 2021 at 21:15

The majority of MPs voted not to exclude large digital services companies from tax incentives for investing in plant and machinery and not to make such incentives conditional on support for unions and paying a living wage.

MPs were considering the Finance (No. 2) Bill.^[1][2][3]

The amendment rejected by a majority of MPs in this vote was:

• Amendment 79, in clause 9, page 4, line 2, at end insert:
• “provided that any such company which has more than £1 million in qualifying expenditure must also—
• (i) adhere to International Labour Organisation convention 98 on the right to organise and collective bargaining,
• (ii) be certified or be in the process of being certified by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage employer, and
• (iii) not be liable to the digital services tax”.

The rejected amendment was accompanied by the following explanatory statement from its proposer:

• This amendment would, in respect of companies with qualifying expenditure of over £1 million, add conditions relating to ILO convention 98, the living wage and the digital services tax.

Clause 9 of the Bill^[2][3] provided for additional tax relief for companies investing in plant and machinery. The amendment sought to make this tax relief conditional on support for unions, paying the living wage, and to exclude large digital services companies from the relief.

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• [1] Parliament's webpage on the Finance (No. 2) Bill, Parliament.uk
• [2] The Finance (No. 2) Bill (as introduced 11 March 2021), Parliament.uk
• [3] Explanatory notes to the Finance (No. 2) Bill, Parliament.uk

Debate in Parliament |