The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee will hold the first evidence session of its inquiry into the taxation of the hospitality and tourism sectors in Northern Ireland.
\r\nThe session will examine arguments for and against a VAT cut for NI’s hospitality industry, in the context of the Republic of Ireland reducing VAT on food services from 13.5% to 9% in July 2026, as well as other support for businesses recently announced by the UK Government.
","secondaryDescription":"In the first panel, MPs will question representatives from two hospitality industry trade bodies: Hospitality Ulster and the Restaurants Association of Ireland.
\r\nThe committee will likely ask about the financial health of the sector and the potential impact a VAT cut could have for businesses in Northern Ireland.
\r\nThen, MPs will hear from Gareth Hetherington, the Director of the Economic Policy Centre at Ulster University. The committee will likely ask about the viability of a VAT cut for the sector, as well as alternative policy options the UK Government and Northern Ireland Executive could consider to support the industry.
","parliamentTvUrl":"https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/547ddb8d-f343-445a-a566-1000fe0ecbd0","id":28008,"name":null,"startDate":"2026-09-02T09:00:00","endDate":"2026-09-02T12:00:00","cancelledDate":null,"locationId":5,"location":"The Boothroyd Room, Portcullis House","eventType":{"id":6,"name":"Formal meeting (oral evidence session)","isVisit":false,"description":"Formal meetings may be held in private (for example to consider a draft report) or in public (for example to hear oral evidence), and require a minimum number of members to be present."},"eventSource":"CIS","committees":[{"contact":{"email":"northircom@parliament.uk","phone":null,"address":"Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA","contactDisclaimer":"We receive a significant number of emails each day. All requests and invitations are considered but we do not respond directly to everyone.\r\nPlease be aware, the committee does not look at individual cases or specific complaints."},"id":120,"name":"Northern Ireland Affairs Committee","parentCommittee":null,"subCommittees":[],"house":"Commons","leadHouse":null,"category":{"id":1,"name":"Select"},"committeeTypes":[{"id":1,"name":"(HC) Public Standing Orders - Departmental","committeeCategory":{"id":1,"name":"Select"}}],"showOnWebsite":true,"websiteLegacyUrl":"https://old.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/northern-ireland-affairs-committee/","websiteLegacyRedirectEnabled":false,"startDate":"1994-11-16T00:00:00","endDate":null,"dateCommonsAppointed":"2024-10-21T00:00:00","dateLordsAppointed":null,"scrutinisingDepartments":[],"isLeadCommittee":true,"nameHistory":[{"id":118,"committeeId":120,"name":"Northern Ireland Affairs Committee","startDate":"1994-11-16T00:00:00","endDate":null}]}],"committeeBusinesses":[{"id":9922,"title":"The taxation of the hospitality and tourism sectors in Northern Ireland","type":{"id":1,"name":"Inquiry","isInquiry":true,"description":"Inquiries allow committees to consider oral and written evidence on a particular topic. They usually result in the publication of a report."},"openDate":"2026-07-09T00:00:00","closeDate":null,"latestReport":null,"openSubmissionPeriods":[],"closedSubmissionPeriods":[],"nextOralEvidenceSession":null,"contact":{"email":"northircom@parliament.uk","phone":null,"address":null,"contactDisclaimer":null}}],"childEvents":[],"nextActivity":null,"activities":[{"committeeBusinesses":[{"id":9922,"title":"The taxation of the hospitality and tourism sectors in Northern Ireland","type":{"id":1,"name":"Inquiry","isInquiry":true,"description":"Inquiries allow committees to consider oral and written evidence on a particular topic. They usually result in the publication of a report."},"openDate":"2026-07-09T00:00:00","closeDate":null,"latestReport":null,"openSubmissionPeriods":[],"closedSubmissionPeriods":[],"nextOralEvidenceSession":null,"contact":{"email":"northircom@parliament.uk","phone":null,"address":null,"contactDisclaimer":null}}],"oralEvidences":[],"id":38475,"name":null,"startDate":"2026-09-02T09:45:00","endDate":"2026-09-02T10:45:00","eventId":28008,"isPrivate":false,"activityType":"Oral evidence","attendees":[{"displayOrder":1,"organisations":[{"name":"Hospitality Ulster","role":"Chair","idmsId":"https://id.parliament.uk/ZEBkR1T3","cisId":44128}],"submitterType":0,"additionalContext":null,"id":36608,"personId":123927,"name":"Michael Cadden","photoUrl":null,"memberInfo":null},{"displayOrder":2,"organisations":[{"name":"Hospitality Ulster","role":"Member","idmsId":"https://id.parliament.uk/ZEBkR1T3","cisId":44128}],"submitterType":0,"additionalContext":null,"id":36609,"personId":123928,"name":"Selina Horshi","photoUrl":null,"memberInfo":null},{"displayOrder":3,"organisations":[{"name":"Restaurants Association of Ireland","role":"CEO","idmsId":null,"cisId":113348}],"submitterType":0,"additionalContext":null,"id":36610,"personId":123929,"name":"Adrian Cummins","photoUrl":null,"memberInfo":null}]},{"committeeBusinesses":[{"id":9922,"title":"The taxation of the hospitality and tourism sectors in Northern Ireland","type":{"id":1,"name":"Inquiry","isInquiry":true,"description":"Inquiries allow committees to consider oral and written evidence on a particular topic. They usually result in the publication of a report."},"openDate":"2026-07-09T00:00:00","closeDate":null,"latestReport":null,"openSubmissionPeriods":[],"closedSubmissionPeriods":[],"nextOralEvidenceSession":null,"contact":{"email":"northircom@parliament.uk","phone":null,"address":null,"contactDisclaimer":null}}],"oralEvidences":[],"id":38557,"name":null,"startDate":"2026-09-02T10:45:00","endDate":"2026-09-02T12:00:00","eventId":28008,"isPrivate":false,"activityType":"Oral evidence","attendees":[{"displayOrder":1,"organisations":[{"name":"Ulster University","role":"Director of the Economic Policy Centre","idmsId":"https://id.parliament.uk/ld9r0Zud","cisId":82223}],"submitterType":0,"additionalContext":null,"id":36658,"personId":124085,"name":"Gareth Hetherington","photoUrl":null,"memberInfo":null}]}]}