First sittings of the Finance (No 2) Bill 2022-23 debates

The first sitting of the Finance Bill Public Bill Committee began with some familiar house-keeping messages. Chair Esther McVey reminded MPs that the committee was sitting in public and the proceedings were being broadcast. She reminded members to switch electronic devices to silent and said that jackets could be removed.

The lack of opportunity for the committee to hear oral evidence was raised by Kirsty Blackman (SNP). She said ‘nothing quite compares to asking questions in an oral evidence session’ and given the complexity of the Finance Bill it would have been ‘beneficial’ to be able to ask experts for information.

This has been discussed in previous Finance Bill public bill committees. Reiterating why there was no need for oral evidence Victoria Atkins (financial secretary to the Treasury) said the bill already went through ‘extensive scrutiny’ in the committee of the whole House and there was a...