Member

I do not know what the cause of that is—it may be to do with incorporated sole traders, but we do not have any information. Could the Minister shed any light on those figures and tell us whether any further analysis can be shared with the Committee? In particular, I want to ask the Minister whether there is any further analysis of the 250,000 businesses that are expected to pay more national insurance contributions as a result of the Bill. According to the ONS data, there were 264,000 businesses with more than nine employees, so I agree with the noble Lord, Lord Londesborough, that most employers in the category of those who will be affected negatively by this Bill are employers in businesses with more than nine employees. That means that huge numbers of small and medium-sized businesses are caught by the changes, with, at best, only micro-businesses escaping a negative impact.