Work and Families Bill

No, I do not. I shall come on to the work of the Committee later. The hon. Member for Epping Forest (Mrs. Laing) said that it was a question of balance. I agree. We must consider what provides value for the money for the taxpayer when administering the system. We made it clear at the outset that we are committed to delivering the work and families legislation in a way that strikes the right balance between the needs of children, families and employers. We looked at a range of issues that affect employees and employers. At the time of the 2004 pre-Budget report, we made a commitment to consider the possibility of direct payments as a way of easing the administration of leave and pay. After careful consideration, we concluded that the scheme would be out of proportion to the benefits accruing, representing neither good value for money for the taxpayer nor a significant saving for employers. Hon. Members asked about costs and it was estimated that set-up costs would be up to £75 million with annual running costs of £50 million. Those costs should be contrasted with an estimated net benefit for employers of about only £1 million a year. A figure of £38 million was mentioned, but if we accepted new clause 1, which applies to employers with 50 employees or fewer, HMRC’s analysis would be relevant. I accept that hon. Members wish to question the figures as they try to make their case, but those figures were widely available. In the CBI response, no one questioned the figures or the detail, nor did they offer alternative figures to explain why the direct payment scheme would work. There would not be any net benefit for the taxpayer or, indeed, small businesses. As for the cost to business of the whole Bill, the majority of costs fall on the Government, as the Treasury reimburses business for statutory maternity, adoption and paternity pay at 92 per cent. for large businesses and at 104.5 per cent. for smaller businesses. As the right hon. Member for Wokingham said, that is worth about £390 million a year. Small businesses will bear only a small proportion of the costs of the Bill. For example, of the £29 million to £43 million net cost to business of extending maternity and adoption pay, small businesses will pay only £1 million to £8 million. We have taken the problems for small businesses into account. I do not think that there are differences between us on whether the self-employed or small businesses are affected, but we must achieve the right balance. We are not starting from scratch, as we already have statutory maternity and paternity pay. The principle of the Bill has been accepted by all parties. I raised an article in today’s Financial Times with the hon. Member for Epping Forest (Mrs. Laing). I accept that she has not had time to read it, but it suggests that the Opposition have changed their view on paternity leave and fathers taking time off when their child is born. In earlier debates, however, she backed what we are trying to achieve.