theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increased usage of heavy vehicles on recent trends in the levels of expenditure on road maintenance and repairs. \p Lilian Greenwood: The increased usage of heavy vehicles is one of many factors affecting road condition. Others include weather, overall traffic volumes, the age of the road and standard to which it was constructed, and the topography of the area. It is the responsibility of individual highway authorities to maintain and improve their networks, based on local circumstances.

The Government has recognised the pressures on local highway networks and is providing almost £1.6 billion for local highway maintenance in 2025/26, an increase of £500 million compared to 2024/25. This funding is not ring-fenced, and it is a matter for local authorities to determine how it is best spent. The Department is also committed to updating its guidance to local highway authorities on how to manage their networks, which will include advice on matters of this sort.
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Sammy Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of seafarers' welfare, in the context of roster patterns. \p Mike Kane: The Government is committed to strengthening workers’ rights at sea, which is why as part of the Employment Rights Bill we are introducing powers for Ministers to create a legally-binding Seafarers’ Charter. This will protect and improve seafarer working conditions, including by addressing seafarer fatigue.

We will continue to work with like-minded states and through international forums to raise international standards for seafarer welfare.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has had recent discussions with Boeing on the potential impact of technological advances in airplane manufacturing on travel times between London and the US. \p Mike Kane: The Secretary of State for Transport has not met individually with Boeing since taking up the post. A representative of Boeing joined the Secretary of State and other Ministers at a meeting of the Jet Zero Taskforce in December 2024.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) cost-efficiency of pothole repair strategies in South Cambridgeshire constituency. \p Lilian Greenwood: Cambridgeshire County Council is the local highway authority for the South Cambridgeshire constituency. Cambridgeshire is a member of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA). It is the responsibility of individual highway authorities to maintain and improve their networks, based upon their local knowledge, circumstances, and priorities.

For the 2025/26 financial year, this Government is providing CPCA with £37.4 million for highway maintenance, an increase of around £10.3 million compared to 2024/25. Funding is not ring-fenced, and it is a matter for local authorities to determine how the money is best spent.

As of Monday 24 March, the Department has written to all local highway authorities advising them that 25% of their uplift in maintenance funding is contingent on them demonstrating to Government that they are complying with certain criteria aimed at driving best practice and continual improvement in highways maintenance practice. All authorities will have to publish information online and share information with the Department. The Department will assess the information provided by Cambridgeshire County Council in due course.
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Monica Harding:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of section 2 of the Football Offences Act 1991; and whether she plans to reduce the scope of that Act. \p Dame Diana Johnson: This Government is committed to preventing violence and disorder at football matches and works closely with stakeholders including the police and football authorities to ensure the police and courts are empowered to tackle football-related violence and disorder.

Section 2 of the Football (Offences) Act 1991 (‘the Act’) creates the offence of missile throwing at designated football matches in England and Wales.

Published data on prosecutions and convictions for offences under section 2 of the Act for the last five years are shown in the table below and can be found on GOV.UK here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-june-2024

Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: June 2024 - GOV.UK

Year ending

Prosecutions

Convictions

June 2020

37

32

June 2021

7

7

June 2022

81

75

June 2023

114

103

June 2024

118

113

We do not centrally collate data relating to the proportion of cases resulting in a conviction under section 2 of the Act that did not have a recorded (a) injury and (b) victim.

We keep all legislation under review, but do not have any plans to reduce the scope of this Act.
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Blair McDougall:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the High Court ruling that Part 4 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 is incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights. \p Dame Diana Johnson: As with all cases of this nature, we are now carefully considering the judgment in order to determine the best way forward.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has had discussions with the Police Service of Northern Ireland on the timing of the implementation of firearms licenses. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Northern Ireland has its own firearms legislation which is separate to the legislation in Great Britain. This is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Government and this legislation governs how the Police Service of Northern Ireland undertakes its firearms licensing functions.
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Preet Kaur Gill:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help improve the collection of data on people affected by hate crime by (a) religion and (b) ethnicity. \p Dame Diana Johnson: This Government is committed to tackling all forms of hate crime and we back the police in taking strong action against the perpetrators of these appalling offences.

The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of religious hate crimes by the perceived targeted religion of the victim and on the ethnicity of victims in racially or religiously aggravated crimes that occur in England and Wales. The latest information can be found here: Hate crime, England and Wales, year ending March 2024 - GOV.UK

The Home Office is continuously working with Police Forces to improve the quality and coverage of these data. Home Office crime and policing data collections are reviewed annually via the Annual Data Requirement board consisting of Home Office and police force representatives. Ways to improve quality and coverage of data collections are considered as part of the review process.
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Marsha De Cordova:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with the Metropolitan Police on the case of Ali Kololo. \p Dame Diana Johnson: The operationally independent Metropolitan Police continue to progress matters relating to this case. It would not be appropriate for Home Office Ministers to comment on any discussions concerning the individual.
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Dr Roz Savage:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to improve the finances of fire and rescue services. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Government funding for fire and rescue services is provided by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) through the Local Government Finance Settlement in the form of revenue support grant (RSG) and retained business rates.

MHCLG published the Final Local Government Finance Settlement for 2025/26 on 3 February 2025 which sets out grant allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue. Standalone fire and rescue authorities will see an increase in core spending power of up to £65.5 million in 2025/26. Including the National Insurance Contribution Grant, this is an increase of 3.6 per cent in cash terms compared to 2024/25.

Officials will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities.
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Dr Roz Savage:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has plans to allocate additional funding to fire and rescue services to improve their wildfire and flood response rates. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Government funding for fire and rescue services is provided by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) through the Local Government Finance Settlement in the form of revenue support grant (RSG) and retained business rates.

As a recommendation in phase 2 of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, the Prime Minister has announced a Machinery of Government change, which will see all responsibility for fire and rescue transfer to MHCLG from 1st April.

Overall, fire and rescue authorities will receive around £2.87 billion in 2024/25. Additionally, Government supports fire and rescue authorities in responding to flood incidents by providing national resilience High Volume Pump (HVP) capability comprising 45 HVPs. These are available to be used by fire & rescue services across the country during major flood incidents.

The Government maintains regular engagement with the National Fire Chiefs Council to monitor and review sector led improvements to wildfire response and mitigation. In addition, the Government will continue to work closely with stakeholders across the sector to ensure fire and rescue services have the resources they need to protect communities.
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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help tackle (a) violence and (b) abuse against retail delivery drivers. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Shop theft continues to increase at an unacceptable level with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shopworkers to do this. We will not stand for this. Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work.

Through our Crime and Policing Bill, we have introduced a standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores, sending a strong message to offenders and would-be offenders that violence against retail workers will not be tolerated. The Bill is making its way through Parliament and had its Second Reading on 10 March.

As introduced, the definition of a 'retail worker' does not include delivery drivers. Keeping a tight definition provides legal clarity and ensures there is less ambiguity for courts in identifying whether an individual is a retail worker and impacted during their job. Workers whose roles are not included are already covered under other legislation such as the Offences against the Person Act 1861, which also covers more serious violence, such as actual bodily harm (ABH) and grievous bodily harm (GBH).

That said, the whole purpose of the parliamentary process is to scrutinise the provisions in the Bill and we will, of course, consider carefully any amendments and supporting evidence.
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Liam Byrne:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the proportion of police staff involved with investigating (a) fraud and (b) other types of economic crime in 2023 and 2024. \p Dame Diana Johnson: A new National Fraud Squad has been established, consisting of a total of c.500 specialist investigators across the NCA, City of London Police and Regional Organised Crime Units. The NFS had c.300 new and existing investigators in post in May 2023 when the Department’s 2023 Fraud Strategy launched. A further c.100 were in post by January 2024, followed by another c.100 this year. The NFS is transforming the law enforcement response by taking a proactive, intelligence-led approach to identifying and disrupting the most serious fraudsters, domestically and overseas, jointly with government and industry.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much the Government spent on housing asylum seekers in (a) hotels and (b) other forms of temporary accommodation on (i) 3 July 2024 and (ii) 24 March 2025. \p Dame Angela Eagle: Information on asylum expenditure is published on gov.uk in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts.
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the requirement for children born in the UK to parents with refugee status to make a separate asylum claim to obtain refugee status on people with that status. \p Dame Angela Eagle: Under the Immigration Rules protection status can only be granted when an individual’s protection needs have been considered and they are found to be eligible for refugee status in their own right.

All asylum decisions must demonstrate that the child’s best interests have been a primary (albeit not necessarily the only) consideration. In many cases the basis of a child’s claim for asylum is the same as that of their parent(s), and we can assess a child’s claim for asylum based on the information the parent provides to us, applying the same principles as the Family Asylum Claim process. Further information about the Family Asylum Claim process is available here: Family asylum claims: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK.

There may be cases where a child has no protection needs and would not be at risk on return to their country of origin. In these cases, parents can apply for leave-in-line on behalf of their child. Further information can be found in the dependants and former dependants guidance here: Dependants and former dependants: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK.

We keep all of our policies under review and the Home Office continues to invest in a programme of transformation and business improvement initiatives to focus on speeding up decision making and reduce the time people spend in the asylum system and decrease the number of people who are awaiting an interview or decision.
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Matthew Patrick:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many days Border Force would have implemented a red rating for expected numbers of small boat crossings in the Channel in (a) 2021-22, (b) 2022-23, and (c) 2023-24, if the existing methodology for implementing a red rating had been in place for the duration of those previous financial years. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office has interpreted the question to mean the periods 6 April – 5 April for the years quoted. The Met Office changed its assessment criteria for likelihood of crossings in May 2023. The following figures set out the numbers of days per financial year that would have been assessed as likely for crossings (so called ‘red days’) had the post-May 2023 definition been applied at that time.

(a) 2021-22 – 164

(b) 2022-23 – 159

(c) 2023-24 – 108
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Matthew Patrick:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) visits were made to premises where illegal working was suspected to be taking place and (b) arrests were made at those premises by immigration enforcement teams in (i) 2018-19, (ii) 2019-20, (iii) 2020-21, (iv) 2021-22, (v) 2022-23, (vi) 2023-24 and (viii) 2024-25. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The information requested is not currently available.

Information relating to the number of illegal working visits is available in the Statistics relating to Illegal Migration - GOV.UK.

Financial year

Volume of illegal working visits

2019/20

6236

2020/21

567

2021/22

2069

2022/23

4237

2023/24

6720

Information relating to the volume of arrests for these periods is not currently available.

Information relating to illegal working enforcement activity in 2024/25 will be published on Gov.uk in due course.
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Matthew Patrick:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many civil penalties were issued for incidents of illegal working in (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21, (d) 2021-22, (e) 2022-23, (f) 2023-24 and (g) 2024-25; and what the total value of those penalties was. \p Dame Angela Eagle: Information on illegal working civil penalty statistics has been published since 2016 as part of the Home Office Immigration Transparency Data. This can be found at Immigration Enforcement data: Q4 2024 - GOV.UK on tab CPO2.

The most recent published transparency data covers the period up to 31 December 2024.

Please note the figures are for penalties levied at the initial decision stage which may be reduced, cancelled or increased at the objection or appeal stage.
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 February 2025 to Question 31403 on Animal Experiments: Licensing, when that project licence application was refused; for what reason it was refused; and what the intended purpose of the project licence was. \p Dan Jarvis: The project licence refused by the animals in science Regulator in November 2024 was for training and educational purposes. It was refused due to the existence of a scientifically satisfactory alternative.

The structuring of the application process means that the number of applications refused is not an indicator for the robustness of the regulatory regime. The Government publishes extensive guidance for the regulated sector on applying for project licences.
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Andrew Cooper:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help protect young people from drink spiking. \p Jess Phillips: Spiking is an appalling crime that undermines the public's right to feel safe when they are simply enjoying a night out. It can happen to anybody regardless of age, gender or sexuality. We are taking tough new action to prevent spiking incidents, ensure that victims of spiking receive enhanced protection and support when they are out and about - creating a safer night out for everyone.

The Government has introduced new legislation, as part of the Crime and Policing Bill, to strengthen the response to these appalling incidents.

We have also rolled out specialist spiking training for staff in the night-time economy to ensure they have the skills to detect possible spiking incidents, support victims who have been spiked and to support law enforcement with evidence collection.

Additionally, we are committed to supporting the Office for Students and Department for Education in implementing a new registration condition which, from August 2025, will require all higher education providers to implement policies and procedures to prevent and tackle sexual misconduct and other forms of harassment affecting their students; including all forms of spiking.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will undertake an investigation into the Financial Conduct Authority's regulation of Collateral (UK) Limited. \p Emma Reynolds: The conduct of Collateral’s Directors was plainly unacceptable, as evidence by their conviction for fraud and the criminal sentence that they are now serving.

More widely, the Government does not have plans to commence an investigation into the Financial Conduct Authority's regulation of Collateral.

The FCA has investigative and enforcement powers of its own and has already commenced investigations into particular peer-to-peer lenders, certain of which are ongoing.

In the case of Collateral specifically, the FCA has undertaken an internal investigation already, including into its own role – the outcome of which is publicly available.
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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increases to employer's National Insurance contributions on the (a) hospitality and (b) leisure sectors in Surrey Heath constituency. \p James Murray: A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.

Estimates of the impact on businesses in Surrey Heath from changes to employer NICs announced at Autumn Budget 2024 are not available.
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Mr Paul Kohler:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer,  pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2025 to Question 39774, what assessment she has made of the medium-long term impact of the closure of (a) grassroots and (b) cultural nightlife businesses on tax revenue. \p James Murray: The Government is creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street. That is why we have announced our intention to introduce permanently lower rates for high street RHL properties, with rateable values below £500,000, from 2026-27, which we intend to fund through a higher rate for high-value properties (those with a rateable value of £500,000 and above).

Ahead of these changes being made, the Government recognises that businesses will need support in 2025-26. As such, we have prevented the current RHL relief from ending in April 2025, extending it for one year to ensure that over 250,000 RHL properties see a full 40 per cent reduction on their liability, and we have frozen the small business multiplier. Taken together with small business rates relief, freezing the small business multiplier has protected over one million properties from inflationary bill increases.

To recognise the economic and cultural importance of British pubs, the government also announced a duty cut on approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and is equivalent to a 1p duty reduction on a typical pint.
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Mr Gregory Campbell:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether (a) she and (b) her officials have had discussions with Natwest Bank on fixed rate loans for small and medium-sized businesses taken out in the 2008 period. \p Emma Reynolds: The Government regularly engages with a range of stakeholders across the financial services landscape, and it is important that communication can take place in a free and frank way.

Officials and Ministers frequently engage with NatWest, as one of the UK's largest banks on a range of topics, including matters relating to SME lending.
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Noah Law:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Office for Budget Responsibility's methodology for understanding fiscal multipliers. \p Emma Reynolds: The independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is responsible for preparing forecasts for the UK economy and public finances. This includes an assessment of the impact of government policies, where the OBR regularly reviews and publish papers on its approach.

The OBR assesses the demand side impacts of policy using multipliers – these estimate the impact on real GDP from government policy. The OBR’s multiplier framework is described in Dynamic scoring of policy measures in OBR forecasts.

The OBR also takes account of how specific policies affect the supply side of the economy. This approach is set out in Forecasting potential output - the supply side of the economy.

The OBR have also recently published a new framework for assessing public investment which can be found in the OBR’s Discussion Paper No. 5: Public investment and potential output. This framework was used in the Autumn Budget 2024, where the OBR judged the increase in departmental capital spending would directly raise potential output by 1.1 percent by 2073-74.

The Chancellor and OBR Budget Responsibility Committee speak regularly, and there is an ongoing dialogue at official level on a range of issues. This includes the OBR’s approach to preparing forecasts for the UK economy and public finances.

The OBR committed to reviewing their demand multipliers in their most recent forecast, published on Wednesday 26th March 2025.
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Llinos Medi:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Crown Estate charges private businesses (a) lease fees and (b) royalty fees on profits. \p James Murray: The Crown Estate as a landowner charges occupiers/tenants, which can be private businesses, rent in accordance with their lease agreements.

In some cases, the rent structure under The Crown Estate’s leases can include a turnover rent element whereby the amount of rent charged is either a percentage of the occupier/tenant’s turnover made at the leased property or the higher of fixed rent and a percentage of the occupier/tenant’s turnover at the leased property. These rent structures are commonly used in the retail market. Royalty fees are used in certain specific situations within a lease structure.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 20 December 2024 to Question 19379 on Marginal Tax Rates, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of people earning just under £100,000 (a) working additional hours and (b) receiving a pay rise on the (i) 60% effective marginal rate of taxation and (ii) loss of childcare support. \p James Murray: As set out previously, within the personal tax system, withdrawal of the Personal Allowance affects those with income over £100,000 a year. It was introduced in 2010-11 and occurs gradually, with £1 of allowance lost for every £2 of income above the income limit of £100,000, implying an effective marginal income tax rate of 60 per cent. This reduction continues until the Personal Allowance is completely withdrawn for those with incomes above £125,140.

The Government recognises that because of this, taxpayers with incomes within the taper band face a higher a marginal tax rate and that it introduces some complexity into the tax system. However, removing this would be expensive and regressive.

Families are not eligible for the 30 free hours or tax-free childcare offers if one parent earns over £100,000. The income cap is per person and aligns with an existing boundary in the tax system. This means there is no incentive for the lower earner in the household to reduce their income in order to be eligible.

The Government is committed to managing the public finances in a balanced and responsible way, and this means continuing to target support at those who need it most.
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Ben Maguire:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed increase in employer National Insurance contributions on high street hair salons. \p James Murray: In order to repair the public finances and help raise the revenue required to increase funding for public services, the Government has taken the difficult decision to increase employer National Insurance contributions (NICs).

The Government published a Tax Information and Impact Note on 13 November which sets out the impact of the employer NICs changes.

The Government has protected the smallest businesses and charities from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500, which means that 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all next year, more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package, and all eligible employers will be able to employ up to four full-time workers on the National Living Wage and pay no employer NICs.
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Mrs Sharon Hodgson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March to Question 33256 on Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services, (a) what steps her department is taking to decrease the average wait time for calls to be answered by HMRC and (b) what plans she has to prevent customers being directed to digital services and the HMRC app when their case requires an over-the-phone conversation. \p James Murray: HMRC received additional funding last year to recruit more customer service advisers to help improve telephony performance. HMRC recognise the real difficulties that delays on phones cause customers. At the end of last year, performance on helplines had improved and HMRC met their telephony service standard in Quarter Three of 2024-25. They continue to aim to answer calls as quickly as possible but wait times may be longer than usual during busy periods. HMRC publish monthly performance data, including information on their telephony service, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-monthly-performance-reports.

HMRC’s online services and the HMRC app consistently receive high customer satisfaction ratings. However, HMRC know that not all tasks can currently be completed online. The HMRC transformation roadmap, which will be published later this year, will include details about additional digital services that will mean a better experience for taxpayers, agents, and businesses.

In the meantime, HMRC’s helplines remain available to support taxpayers with any queries which cannot be resolved online. HMRC are committed to providing efficient and accessible services to all their customers.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will remove VAT on (a) labour and (b) materials for restoration work on listed buildings. \p James Murray: The Government has no plans to remove VAT on restoration work on listed buildings.

VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. Taxation is a vital source of revenue that helps to fund vital public services.

Evidence suggests that businesses only partially pass on any savings from lower VAT rates. In some cases, reliefs do not represent good value for money, as there is no guarantee that savings will be passed on to consumers.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport administer the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. This provides grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship.

The Government keeps all tax policy under review, and any decisions on tax policy will be announced at fiscal events in the context of the overall public finances.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_325

Kirith Entwistle:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to provide support to small businesses to offset increases to employer National Insurance contributions. \p James Murray: The Government has taken difficult but necessary decisions to deliver long-term growth. Fixing the public finances is critical to creating long-term stability in which businesses can invest and thrive.

The Government decided to protect the smallest businesses from the changes to employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that next year, 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all, and more than half of all employers will either gain or will see no change. It means employers will be able to employ up to four full-time workers on the National Living Wage without paying employer NICs.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_326

Vikki Slade:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of linking stamp duty thresholds to regional house prices. \p James Murray: Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is a national tax in England and Northern Ireland charged using the same percentage rates across the country. This ensures stable and predictable revenue for the Exchequer while maintaining fairness for taxpayers. The current structure of SDLT ensures that those buying the most expensive properties contribute the most. Linking SDLT thresholds to regional house prices could increase complexity and create distortive effects around borders, impacting property markets.   More broadly, SDLT continues to be an important source of Government revenue, raising around £12 billion each year to help pay for the essential services the Government provides. Any reforms to SDLT would have to carefully consider impacts on the Exchequer alongside administrative costs and simplicity for the taxpayer. The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the usual tax policy making process.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_327

Martin Wrigley:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps her Department is taking to support the growth of the (a) beer and (b) pub sector. \p James Murray: Pubs, brewers and distillers make a significant contribution to our economy, which is recognised in the tax system. According to the Office for National Statistics' 2023 Business Register and Employment Survey, there were a) 14,000 people employed in distilling, rectifying and blending of spirits, b) 21,000 people employed in the manufacture of beer and c) 474,000 people employed in public houses and bars across Great Britain.

At Autumn Budget, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and is equivalent to a 1p duty reduction on a typical pint. This reduction increased the relief available on draught products to 13.9%.

The government will also consult on ways to encourage small brewers to retain and expand their access to UK pubs, maximising drinkers’ choice and local economies, including through provisions to enable more ‘guest beers’. Generosity of the discount available for small producers has also been increased.

Regarding Business Rates, the Chancellor confirmed her intention to introduce permanently lower tax rates for high street retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values below £500,000, including pubs, from 2026-27. In the interim, the Government extended the current RHL relief for one year at 40%, up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and freeze the small business multiplier for 2025-26.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_328

Vikki Slade:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on recruitment by businesses. \p James Murray: A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.

The Office for Budget Responsibility also published the Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO), with a detailed forecast of the economy and public finances.

We acknowledge that, as the OBR set out, this measure will have an impact on labour supply. With all policies considered, the OBR expect the employment level to increase from 33.6 million in 2024 to 34.8 million in 2029.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_329

Mary Glindon:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to support (a) low and (b) middle-income households with the cost of living. \p James Murray: Living standards, as measured by Real Household Disposable Income per capita, are expected to increase by an annual average of 0.5% over this parliament (Q3 2024 – Q2 2029). This is in stark contrast to the previous parliament which was the worst for living standards growth since ONS records began in 1955.

The Government has set out a Plan for Change, outlining our ambitious yet achievable milestones, including raising living standards in every part of the United Kingdom to ensure working people have more money in their pockets.

Specific actions already taken by the Government include: increasing to the National Living Wage from April 2025; extension of the Household Support Fund and Discretionary Housing Payments in England and Wales in 2025-26; and introduction of a new Fair Repayment Rate from April 2025 to cap debt repayments made through Universal Credit.
wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_330
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_330

Margaret Mullane:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will extend the VAT exemption afforded to adapted motor vehicles for people with disabilities to London’s Black Cabs. \p James Murray: The Government is committed to ensuring support is there for the most vulnerable people in our society. Certain products designed solely for use by a disabled person can qualify for a zero rate of VAT.

VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption, and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. VAT is the UK’s third largest tax, forecast to raise £171 billion in 2024/25. Exceptions to the standard rate have always been limited and balanced against affordability considerations.

Another key consideration when assessing a new VAT relief is whether the cost saving is likely to be passed on to consumers in the form of lower prices. Evidence suggests that businesses only partially pass on any savings from lower VAT rates and so in some cases, reliefs do not represent good value for money.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_331

Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what proportion of British diplomats posted to China have language proficiency in Chinese at CEFR level C1 or higher. \p Catherine West: As of March 2025, 64 Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) staff have achieved qualifications in Mandarin at C1 or C2 level (in the Common European Framework Reference scale) over the past five years. FCDO language qualifications are valid for 5 years.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_332

Ruth Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with international partners on fostering interfaith tolerance in Myanmar in light of the recent military attacks on churches, monasteries, and other religious sites; and what plans his Department has to integrate education on religious freedom and tolerance within its initiatives in the region. \p Catherine West: The UK supports the protection of all religious minority groups in Myanmar. We consistently raise concerns about the discrimination of religious minorities and their places of worship in international fora, including co-sponsoring a UN Human Rights Council resolution on Myanmar in April 2024, which underlined the importance of addressing the root cause of violations against religious minorities. Additionally, we fund the UN's Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, and the Myanmar Witness programme to collect and preserve evidence of violations and abuses, including atrocities against religious minority groups. Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) is incorporated within the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's broader human rights training programme across the region, including workshops on religious engagement for our staff.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_333

Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the resignation of the Government in Serbia on stability in that region. \p Stephen Doughty: Following confirmation by Serbia's Parliament of Prime Minister Vucevic's resignation on 19 March, Serbia's government is operating in technical capacity pending either formation of a new government by 18 April, or potential elections thereafter. We look forward to working with the new government when it is formed. We continue to underline to Serbia's leaders the importance of playing a constructive role in regional stability, as I did most recently when I spoke to Foreign Minister Djuric on 27 March.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_334

Graeme Downie:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has received a report from the British Embassy in Ankara on forthcoming Turkish elections. \p Stephen Doughty: As a close friend and ally of Turkey the Government is closely monitoring the situation. Recent arrests are subject to ongoing domestic Turkish legal process. The UK expects Turkey to uphold its international commitments and the rule of law, including swift and transparent judicial processes. We regularly engage with the Turkish government and there has been Ministerial contact with counterparts in recent days to raise these issues. The UK supports democracy, human rights and the rule of law across the world and will always support the fundamental rights to freedom of speech, peaceful assembly and peaceful protest. The next elections in Turkey are due to take place by May 2028.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_335

Priti Patel:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the agreement with Mauritius on the British Indian Ocean Territory will contain dispute and arbitration mechanisms. \p Stephen Doughty: Once an agreement is reached and the Treaty is signed, the Treaty will be put before both Houses for scrutiny under the CRaG process in the usual way.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-28 conversation_336

Mr Mark Francois:To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department has made an estimate of the potential cost to the public purse of repealing the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023. \p Hilary Benn: The Government, as part of the King’s Speech, committed to repeal and replace the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy & Reconciliation) Act 2023 (the Act). This legislation, which was taken through Parliament by the previous Government, is almost universally opposed, including by families of individuals who lost their lives whilst serving the State in Northern Ireland. Several provisions of that legislation have also been found to be unlawful by the domestic courts, including provisions relating to immunity. Litigation regarding the Act - which remains ongoing - has incurred significant cost to the public purse.

This Government is taking a different approach to that of the previous government, in seeking to implement legacy mechanisms that can comply fully with our human rights obligations and command confidence across communities. Through the Stormont House Agreement and New Decade, New Approach, £250 million has been allocated in order to deliver legacy mechanisms.