Compliance regime for statutory sick pay and statutory maternity pay: Great Britain
National Insurance Contributions and Statutory Payments Bill
11:15 am
Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford and Stortford, Conservative)
The clause seeks to align the procedures for statutory sick pay and statutory maternity pay with national insurance and tax, and in that sense it is similar to clauses 7 and 8. However, there is also a shift from criminal to civil penalties. Given the nature and scale of the offence, that change is to be welcomed on principle. It would be helpful to establish—whether in Committee or, after further research, in writing—what the scale of the offences is. What is the comparative level of the problem for tax, national insurance and the two payments in question? Is there a significant difference in the rate of offending, for example? How does the Paymaster General think the change will affect that difference? Switching to civil penalties is important, because the regulatory impact assessment and the explanatory notes seem to suggest that offences are largely unintended, although not entirely so. A tiny minority try to avoid their responsibilities, whereas most people who fall foul do not have their sums right or fail to meet the deadlines.
There is a wider point, which is that Governments and Whitehall need to remember that businesses are doing an unpaid job for them by collecting payroll-related sums. Governments of whatever hue save a
fortune by having those businesses handle and administer their revenues in that form. We would all do well to bear that in mind.
What steps are planned to explain the changes to the business community? It is clear from the regulatory impact assessment that there will be savings, but it is not clear what they will be and how they will work. Will the Paymaster General provide some more meaningful information? Overall, the clause is welcome and we do not wish to oppose it.