theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Richard Tice:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with (a) local authority officers and (b) local authority elected representatives on the cancellation of the local elections in the Isle of Wight; and if she will publish those discussions. \p Jim McMahon: The Secretary of State has not had discussions with these local authorities on the cancellation of the local elections. Discussions on the applications to the Devolution Priority Programme have been had with all upper tier and unitary councils in the preparation of the programme, and those discussions covered all matters related to the timetable and process by both officials and ministers, as you would expect.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her policy is on retaining parliamentary constituency boundaries when grouping the areas currently covered by county councils to form the wider areas to be covered by new unitary authorities. \p Jim McMahon: Local government boundaries are not directly related to Parliamentary constituency boundaries. Local government boundary changes may be considered when undertaking a future Parliamentary constituency boundary review.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the (a) earliest and (b) latest dates are at which she expects elections to be held to (i) the new unitary authority for the area currently covered by Hampshire County Council and (ii) other new unitary authorities for areas covered by County Councils whose elections have been postponed. \p Jim McMahon: Government has agreed to postpone scheduled local elections for Surrey, Norfolk and Suffolk; Essex and Thurrock; Hampshire and the Isle of Wight; East Sussex and West Sussex from May 2025, until May 2026 only. This postponement is crucial in order to ensure that we can reorganise local government and deliver devolution as quickly as possible. For any area in which elections are postponed, we will work with areas to move to elections to new ‘shadow’ unitary councils as soon as possible as is the usual arrangement in the process of local government reorganisation. The exact date of elections to new unitary authorities in any area will depend on the proposals that are developed and submitted to government by councils in that area, and the decisions that are taken on implementing any such proposal. We also intend for Mayoral elections to take place as soon as possible in these areas.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 18 December 2024 to Question 18960 on Council of the Nations and Regions: National Identity, if she will make it her policy to champion (a) the English national identity and (b) pride in England as a constituent nation of the United Kingdom. \p Jim McMahon: We want to see all of England access devolved power by establishing Strategic Authorities that can make key decisions to drive economic growth, preferably with a Mayor. This will ensure that all parts of England have the powerful voice they need in national policymaking through attending the Council of Nations and Regions and the Mayoral Council for England’s Mayors.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions she has had with the National Park Authorities on the English Devolution White Paper. \p Jim McMahon: The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government has not met with any National Park Authorities in relation to the English Devolution White Paper. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will continue to work with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, other Government Departments and local government as we take forward the commitments in the English Devolution White Paper.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Chris Coghlan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure that there is sufficient local representation in the new unitary authorities. \p Jim McMahon: I wrote to all councils in two-tier areas and to neighbouring small unitaries on 5th February to formally invite unitary proposals, with interim plans to be provided on or before 21 March 2025. The interim plans should include a view as to the councillors’ numbers that will ensure both effective democratic representation for all parts of the area and also effective governance and decision-making arrangements which will balance the unique needs of your cities, towns, rural and coastal areas, in line with the Local Government Boundary Commission for England guidance. These letters are published at Local government reorganisation: invitation to local authorities in two-tier areas - GOV.UK
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Chris Coghlan:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the compatibility of recent parliamentary constituency boundary changes with proposed local government reorganisation. \p Jim McMahon: Local government boundaries are not directly related to Parliamentary constituency boundaries. Local government boundary changes may be considered when undertaking a future Parliamentary constituency boundary review.
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Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for what positions other than (a) new regional mayors and (b) parish and town councillors will elections be held in May 2026 in areas where local authority elections have been postponed for 12 months. \p Jim McMahon: The postponed elections of councillors to the county councils of East Sussex, Essex, Hampshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Surrey and West Sussex and the unitary councils of Isle of Wight and Thurrock are due to take place in May 2026. In addition, scheduled elections of councillors to district councils within the county areas listed above are due to take place in May 2026.
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Ms Polly Billington:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she plans to announce a successor body to the High Streets Task Force. \p Alex Norris: This Government is fully committed to rejuvenating our high streets and supporting the businesses and communities that make our town centres successful. The Chancellor confirmed at Autumn Budget 2024 that the Long-Term Plan for Towns will be retained and reformed as part of a new regeneration programme. This will include specialised support to communities during the delivery phase of the programme, learning from the support offered through the High Streets Task Force. Further information on the Long-Term Plan for Towns programme will be provided in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Charlotte Cane:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help SMEs adopt digital technology. \p Gareth Thomas: To support more small businesses' digitisation efforts, we announced at Budget 2024 that we would extend the work of the SME Digital Adoption Taskforce. The Taskforce is made up of industry experts and focuses on addressing the challenge of how to support SMEs to adopt and implement productivity-enhancing technologies, such as customer relationship management, accountancy, and resource planning software. We intend to publish a summary of the Taskforce's draft recommendations shortly and their full report will be published later this year.
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Munira Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has met with the Licence UK Construction Task Force set up by the Federation of Master Builders. \p Sarah Jones: The Government regularly reviews how standards of consumer protection within the construction sector could be improved. This includes discussions with industry stakeholders, such as the Federation of Master Builders, and with Members of Parliament on a licensing scheme to protect consumers.

There are advantages and disadvantages to introducing a licencing scheme in the domestic construction market. The advantages may include higher standards of competence and more effective consumer redress. Whilst the disadvantages may include the cost, complexity and additional administrative burden. Any action that the Government takes on licensing to protect customers and standards needs to be robust, proportionate and evidence based.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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David Chadwick:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what regulatory mechanisms are in place to help consumers verify the legitimacy of communications from (a) banks, (b) energy providers and (c) telecommunications companies to help prevent scams. \p Justin Madders: Although the Department of Business and Trade does not directly regulate these sectors, Companies House and the Insolvency Service supply data on UK registered companies to assist law enforcement targeting online fraud and other economic crimes. Furthermore, through the Consumer Protection Partnership, we raise awareness about how to spot, avoid and report scams.

Across Government, the Home Office works with Ofcom to prevent phone number ‘spoofing’, which is the practice of scammers impersonating UK phone numbers to trick people into thinking they are speaking to legitimate businesses.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Munira Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of creating an ombudsman for home owner property extensions. \p Justin Madders: The Government continues to consider ways in which consumers can be supported in accessing redress and regularly reviews how standards of consumer protection within the construction sector could be improved.

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 contains measures to improve Alternative Dispute Resolution in consumer markets by raising standards of consistency and quality, and encouraging business take up.

The Government-funded Citizens Advice consumer service offers free advice to consumers on their rights and how to take complaints forward. A list of Alternative Dispute Resolution bodies and their related sector is available on the Chartered Trading Standards Institute website.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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David Simmonds:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 9 January 2025 to Question 19680 on High Streets Task Force, what discussions his Department had with retailers on the impact of the reduction in retail, hospitality and leisure business rate relief from April 2025. \p Gareth Thomas: Across Government, Ministers and officials meet with a range of retailers to understand the challenges they face. I have met with the Retail Sector Council where I heard members’ views about the impact of the Budget. More recently, I attended a roundtable organised by the British Retail Consortium, attended by CEOs and Senior Executives from leading retailers, with discussion points including the impact of the Budget and Business Rates.

More broadly, HMT are conducting engagement on future business rate reform and are open to receiving written evidence from stakeholders on the priority areas, prior to March 2025. This will provide retail businesses of any size the opportunity to share their concerns directly with HMT.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an estimate of the potential impact of changes to employers’ National Insurance contributions on employment in the construction industry. \p Gareth Thomas: More than half of employers, including small businesses in the construction sector will see no change or gain overall. The Government has protected small businesses and charities from the impact of the increase to Employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500, and 865,000 employers will pay no NICs next year. Eligible employers will be able to employ up to four full-time workers on the National Living Wage and pay no employer NICs.

Meeting the Government’s commitments to build the infrastructure we need, and deliver 1.5m homes over this Parliament, will need an increased workforce. We are committed to working with industry to do that.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to promote the Business Growth Service with small business owners in Lincolnshire. \p Gareth Thomas: We are engaging widely with stakeholders across the country, including with small business owners and entrepreneurs, on the design, and the implementation of the Business Growth Service (BGS) later this year, to ensure that we deliver on our mission to make it easier for businesses to get the support they need to grow and thrive.
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Andy Slaughter:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what the (a) role and (b) responsibilities are of the trade envoys to (i) Israel and (ii) the Occupied Palestinian Territory. \p Gareth Thomas: Trade Envoys support HMG export and investment services already provided in a market. Each Trade Envoy role is tailored according to the requirements of their respective markets and the Trade Envoys to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories will align with the Departmental priorities identified for those markets.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, for what purposes UK Export Finance has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months. \p Gareth Thomas: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country.

UK Export Finance (UKEF) is currently exploring various scenarios and use cases where AI can assist the department. This involves conducting internal trials and learning  exercises to better understand AI's potential. Throughout this process, UKEF remains committed to adhering to the government's AI policy and guidance.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an estimate of the potential impact of increases to employers’ National Insurance on employment in the Oxford to Cambridge Growth Corridor. \p Gareth Thomas: Prior to the Government’s recent announcement on the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, a Tax Information and Impact Note that covers the employer NICs changes was published by HMRC on 13 November.

We have protected small businesses from the impact of the increase to Employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500, meaning that 865,000 employers will pay no NICs next year, and more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package.

We are considering ways to drive business growth and build on our world-leading strengths in the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor.
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John Glen:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he (a) is taking with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to encourage (i) growth and (ii) investment in food and drink manufacturing and (b) plans to take to support food and drink manufacturing through the forthcoming Industrial Strategy. \p Sarah Jones: Growth is the number one mission of the government. The UK's agriculture food and drink sector plays a significant role in the UK economy, contributing £146.7bn to GVA. The UK presents many opportunities for investment right across the food and drink supply chain stages of product development.   All sectors can shape and will benefit from policy reform through the Industrial Strategy’s cross-cutting policies alongside the broader Growth Mission. This will create the pro-business environment for all businesses to invest and employ, with growth that supports high-quality jobs and ensures that the benefits are shared across people, places, and generations.
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John Glen:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how his Department intends to define the subsectors within Advanced Manufacturing in the forthcoming Industrial Strategy. \p Sarah Jones: The Government committed in the Industrial Strategy Green Paper – Invest 2035 to identify subsectors within Advanced Manufacturing that meet our objectives and for which there is evidence that policy can address barriers to growth.

This includes consideration of the contribution to Net Zero, regional growth, and economic security and resilience. Input from the Sector roundtable’s and industry feedback from responses to this Green Paper to inform this programme of analysis.

The industrial strategy, alongside sector plans for the growth-driving sectors, will be published in spring 2025, aligned with the multi-year spending review.
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John Glen:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of his Department's support for advanced manufacturing within the industrial strategy on food and drink manufacturers. \p Sarah Jones: The Industrial Strategy Green Paper identified eight growth-driving sectors, including advanced manufacturing. All sectors can shape and benefit from policy reform through the Industrial Strategy’s cross-cutting policies alongside the broader Growth Mission. This will create the pro-business environment for all businesses to invest and employ, with growth that supports high-quality jobs and ensures that the benefits are shared across people, places, and generations.

The UK’s food and drink sector plays a significant part in the UK economy, with £146.7bn contribution to GVA. The government is engaging with the food and drink industry regularly to explore all avenues for growth.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to help protect the chemical industry from (a) site closures and (b) job losses. \p Sarah Jones: The chemicals sector underpins almost all manufacturing in the UK and is fundamental to maximising growth and productivity across the economy to drive forward the government’s missions, including delivering growth for all. Reforms are underway to address planning barriers to growth, channel finance towards growth priorities and accelerate the transition to net zero.

This will be supported by our modern Industrial Strategy which will implement targeted policy interventions to drive long-term sustainable, inclusive and secure growth.

Last autumn’s Budget announced continued support for Energy Intensive Industries – including chemical companies - through £350M of additional funding across the next two years.
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Noah Law:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to ensure that social value for communities and workers is prioritised in the forthcoming Critical Mineral Strategy. \p Sarah Jones: The new Critical Minerals Strategy will support the industries of tomorrow, be explicitly targeted at UK strengths, articulate the impacts on people’s lives, deliver for businesses and create new jobs across the UK.

In developing the Strategy, the UK Government is committed to the sustainable development of natural resources in the UK and overseas, in close collaboration with local communities and their workforce to ensure they benefit in turn. The UK Government places a high priority on mining and mineral processing being carried out to the highest standards.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his Department's polices of the Construction Industry Training Board's decision to end the use of Construction Skills Certification Scheme cards. \p Sarah Jones: Construction Skills Certification Scheme Limited is the organisation responsible for providing cards to individuals working on construction sites. The Construction Industry Training Board has not ended the use of Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) cards.

Holding a CSCS card is not a legislative requirement. Most principal contractors and major house builders require workers on their construction sites to hold a valid card.

Standardising the approach to construction skills certification was made by the industry to improve standards of safety and competency on construction sites. This specifies and promotes card schemes displaying the CSCS logo with no equivalents accepted.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the number of workers in the construction industry. \p Sarah Jones: The Department for Business and Trade is working across Government to understand the demand impacts for the construction sector to deliver our built environment and infrastructure commitments.

This includes working with industry and the Construction Industry Training Board to support recruitment initiatives such as GoConstruct, and Open Doors, which aim to attract people to the industry. We are also working with DfE Skills England and the sector to improve routes to achieving qualifications and entering the industry, to ensure there are enough skilled workers to achieve our ambitions for housing and infrastructure delivery.
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Fabian Hamilton:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her Department's policies of the Dasgupta Review, published on 2 February 2021. \p Emma Reynolds: The Government agrees with the central conclusion of the Dasgupta Review that nature, and the biodiversity that underpins it, sustains our economies, livelihoods and wellbeing. It is therefore committed to integrating nature into economic and financial decision-making, and the institutions and systems that underpin it.

As set out at the Budget, the Government is investing in the natural environment, confirming £5 billion over two years to support the transition to a more productive and environmentally sustainable agricultural sector in England, and at least £400m for tree planting and restoration to protect soils, rivers and biodiversity.

The Treasury continues to explore ways to strengthen processes for assessing the climate and environmental impacts of fiscal decisions and improve the Green Book in line with emerging evidence and best practice, building on the extensive guidance already provided for evaluating and monetising natural capital impacts.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make a comparative assessment of the price of (a) non-alcoholic drinks and (b) alcoholic ones. \p Emma Reynolds: The independent Office for National Statistics is responsible for measuring prices. Further information on the prices of commonly bought goods and services, including alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, can be found on the ONS’s shopping prices comparison tool.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/articles/shoppingpricescomparisontool/2023-05-03
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Alison Taylor:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with Santander on (a) its banking presence on high streets and (b) the impact of that on (i) consumers and (ii) businesses. \p Emma Reynolds: The Chancellor of the Exchequer meets regularly with all major banks to discuss a wide variety of topics.

The Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities, high streets and businesses across the UK, and is committed to championing sufficient access for all as a priority. Access to financial services is key to ensuring all citizens and businesses can both contribute to and benefit from growth in the UK.

The Government continues to work closely with banks to roll out 350 banking hubs by the end of this parliament, which will provide local residents and businesses up and down the country with critical cash and banking services.
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Alison Taylor:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing the personal savings allowance for basic rate taxpayers. \p Emma Reynolds: The Personal Savings Allowance (PSA) allows basic rate taxpayers to receive up to £1,000 in savings income tax free. Higher rate taxpayers can receive up to £500 in savings income tax free.

Individuals can also save up to £20,000 into an Individual Savings Account (ISA) each year, where savings income is received tax free. In addition, the Starting Rate for Savings allows for tax free savings income of up to £5,000 for those with earned income below £17,570. Taken together, this means that around 85 per cent of people with savings income pay no tax on that income.

The Government keeps all aspects of the tax system under review.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Autumn Budget 2024 on trends in the level of employment in the hospitality sector in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26. \p James Murray: The Office for Budget Responsibility’s October 2024 forecast, which considers the impact of all the Budget measures, expects the employment level to increase from 33.1 million in 2024 to 34.3 million in 2029.

The Autumn Budget 2024 introduced measures that benefit the hospitality sector. Cutting alcohol duty on qualifying draught products represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and is equivalent to a 1p duty reduction on a typical strength pint. On business rates, for 2025-26, the government will provide a 40 per cent discount to Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) properties up to a cash cap of £110,0000 per business and has frozen the small business multiplier. This will save the average pub, with a rateable value (RV) of £16,800, over £3,300 in 2025. From 2026-27, the government intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for RHL properties with an RV below £500,000 .
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Mary Kelly Foy:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make it her policy to update Overseas Scale Rates in the upcoming Spring Forecast. \p James Murray: As with all taxes and allowances, the Government keeps flat rates expenses, including Overseas Scale Rates, under review.

Any decisions on future changes in this area will be taken in the context of the wider public finances.
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Alex Ballinger:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with HMRC on instructions given to debt collection agencies in the event of (a) an unresolved dispute or (b) error on a taxpayer's account. \p James Murray: The debt collection agencies (DCAs) that HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) collaborates with are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and are strictly bound by HMRC's processes and guidance.

HMRC undertakes regular reviews, including the monitoring of calls and examination of messages, to ensure compliance with these stringent processes and guidelines.

In the event of an unresolved dispute, or an error on a taxpayer's account, the DCAs must return the taxpayer’s case to HMRC for direct handling.HMRC will then work with the taxpayer to ensure that any disputes or errors are resolved.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2025 on Question 25795 on Agriculture and Business: Inheritance Tax, how many of the 2,000 estates will contain woodlands. \p James Murray: Woodlands may be eligible for certain inheritance tax reliefs and exemptions, depending on the type of woodland and its purpose. Guidance is available at www.gov.uk/guidance/woodland-owners-tax-guidance.

It is estimated that a total of around 2,000 estates will pay more inheritance tax in 2026-27 following the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief. The previous answer outlined that around half of those estates are expected to only hold shares designated as not listed on recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. While estates include supporting documentation about the type of assets on which they claim these reliefs when submitting their claims, only the value of eligible assets is digitally captured in a format available for further analysis. As such, this level of detail is not available from historic claims to estimate how many future estates might contain woodland.
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Carla Denyer:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether (a) Equinor and (b) Ithaca have received (i) investment tax credit and (ii) ringfence expenditure supplement in connection to Rosebank oil field development in the period leading up to January 2025. \p James Murray: It is a long-standing convention that the government does not discuss individual taxpayers, and so the government cannot discuss the amount of tax relief available to individual companies in relation to the oil and gas fields they may have a commercial interest in.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) most recent forecast of tax revenues from the oil and gas sector was published at Autumn Budget 2024 in the Economic and Fiscal Outlook October 2024 (https://obr.uk/efo/economic-and-fiscal-outlook-october-2024/), which also includes other economic projections. The OBR’s tax revenue forecast does not give a breakdown by field or company to protect taxpayer confidentiality but takes into account the impact of relevant, available tax reliefs.

Where data is available, estimates of the cost of tax reliefs available to oil and gas companies are published on gov.uk (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tax-relief-statistics). This publication contains non-disclosive estimates of the number of claimants for each relief.
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UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_179

Blake Stephenson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer to Written Question 25789 on Tax Yields: British Nationals Abroad, whether her Department made an assessment of the potential impact of (a) changes Capital Gains Tax and (b) the Autumn Budget on the number of wealthy taxpayers domiciled in the UK before they were announced. \p James Murray: The Government assessed the impacts of all Budget measures across all levels of income. This includes the impact upon wealthy taxpayers domiciled in the UK. These impacts, grouped together cumulatively, are published online here:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/672156834da1c0d41942a8c9/Impact_on_households.pdf

In determining the Capital Gains Tax (CGT) costings, which were signed off by the OBR, a range of potential behavioural responses were analysed. CGT is paid by fewer than 1% of adults every year, and the Budget changes to CGT will primarily affect people selling financial assets beyond the ISA allowance. The UK’s CGT rates remain internationally competitive.

The Government publishes Tax Information and Impact Notes (TIINs) for all Budget measures, and the TIIN for CGT can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-the-rates-of-capital-gains-tax/1cf25453-5b0c-4e7b-9165-65cf117e0af0
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_180
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_180

Munira Wilson:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the recommendations outlined in the Fairness Foundation's report entitled Wealth Gap Risk Register, published on 15 October 2024. \p James Murray: While income and wealth are not always directly correlated, distributional analysis shows that Government decisions at Autumn Budget 2024 and Spending Review 2025, Phase 1 are progressive and benefit households in the lowest income deciles the most, on average as a percentage of income in 2025-26.

The Government is committed to making sure the wealthiest in our society pay their fair share of tax. That is why the Chancellor announced a series of reforms at Autumn Budget 2024 to help fix the public finances in as fair a way as possible. The increases in tax are concentrated on the highest income households. Overall, on average, all but the richest 10% of households will benefit from policy decisions in 2025-26.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_181

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of reducing the business rate multiplier by 20p for all hereditaments in England used for retail, hospitality and leisure with a rateable value of (a) under £51,000 and (b) £51,000 to £499,999 on business rate income (i) including and (ii) excluding the (A) existing and (B) planned Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Business Rates Relief scheme in the (1) 2023-24, (2) 2024-25 and (3) 2025-26 financial year. \p James Murray: The Government will confirm the rates for the new multipliers at Budget 2025, taking account of the outcomes of the 2026 revaluation as well as the broader economic and fiscal context.

Tax policy and legislation is not subject to the Better Regulation Framework Guidance which requires an Impact Assessment to accompany policy decisions. Nevertheless, when the new multipliers are set at Budget 2025 – to take effect in the 2026-27 billing year – HM Treasury intends to publish analysis of the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_182

Julia Buckley:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the accessibility of HMRC online services for older people with limited forms of ID. \p James Murray: Users may gain access to HMRC online services by signing up for a Government Gateway account.

A new Government Gateway account can be created with only an email address with no documentation required. The customer is provided with a unique username (Government Gateway ID) and is asked to create a password.

This account will not have identity verification associated to it, so can only be used to access Government services which do not require identity proofing.

Where a customer needs to access services requiring identity checking, additional Identity Verification steps are provided by Government Gateway, based on the identity information the customer has available to them.

It is recognised that this can be difficult for some customers, particularly those with limited digital skills or limited documented identity sources.

To prove their identity users will need their National Insurance number or postcode and can use any 2 of the following:

• a valid UK passport

• a UK photocard driving licence issued by the DVLA (or DVA in Northern Ireland)

• details from a Self Assessment tax return if one was made

• information held on their credit record if they have one

From Spring 2025 onwards, HMRC will begin to migrate new and existing Government Gateway customers to GOV.UK One Login. This is the Government’s new strategic authentication and identity checking system, operated by the Government Digital Service in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, which is making it easier and faster for users to prove and reuse their identity to access the government services they need.

Improving accessibility is at the heart of GOV.UK One Login; it offers multiple ways for people to prove who they are, including an in-person option, and a customer support centre to help users with lower digital skills.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_183
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_183

Mr Peter Bedford:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to support businesses in Mid Leicestershire constituency with changes to employer National Insurance contributions. \p James Murray: The Government decided to protect the smallest businesses from these changes 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.

Businesses will still be able to claim employer NICs reliefs including those for under-21s and under-25 apprentices.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_184

Tom Morrison:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an estimate of the number of sole employer self-employed people that may face increased national insurance payments in the next 12 months. \p James Murray: The self-employed do not pay Employer NICs unless they hire employees to work for them. Sole traders who are registered as self-employed will therefore not be paying ER NICs, and therefore not be affected by the changes coming into effect from April 2025.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_185
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_185

Gregory Stafford:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason Ray McCann was appointed Chair of the Independent Review of the Loan Charge. \p James Murray: As I set out in my letter to the reviewer, which was published alongside the terms of reference, I asked Ray McCann to lead the review on the basis of his experience, understanding of the issue, and respect across the tax industry.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_186

Jon Trickett:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of the UN's proposed global tax convention. \p James Murray: The UK is committed to working with all stakeholders to ensure inclusive and effective international tax cooperation, and has been actively engaging in negotiations at the UN over a future Framework Convention.

The UK believes that a UN Tax Framework Convention has the potential to further advance international tax cooperation, but to be successful, it needs to be clear in its aims, avoid duplicating initiatives, and seek to secure the broad support and participation of members.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_187

Jerome Mayhew:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an estimate of the additional unit cost of processing vehicle tax payments on periods shorter than one year. \p James Murray: Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) can be paid annually, or in monthly or 6-monthly instalments. Revenue from motoring taxes helps to fund vital public services and infrastructure, including investment in roads and transport.

The cost to the exchequer is higher when VED is paid monthly or six-monthly, rather than annually, because of lost interest. To reflect this impact on the public finances, monthly and six-monthly payments for vehicle licences include an extra charge to make up for the lost interest.

A six-monthly vehicle licence paid by direct debit is set at 52.5 per cent of the annual rate, and a six-monthly vehicle licence paid by non-direct debit is set at 55 per cent of the annual rate. A monthly vehicle licence paid by direct debit is set at 105 per cent of the annual rate.

As with all taxes, the Government welcomes representations on how the tax system can be improved. The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events in the context of public finances.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_188

Rupert Lowe:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will publish the total cost to the public purse for the provision of diversity, equality and inclusion courses for staff in her Department in 2024. \p James Murray: HM Treasury has spent £0 on diversity, equality and inclusion courses for staff in the calendar year 2024.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_189

Gregory Stafford:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government plans to provide the independent review of the loan charge with data on recent trends in the level of suicides from people subject to the loan charge. \p James Murray: The Government takes issues relating to loss of life or serious injury extremely seriously.

It is for the independent reviewer to decide how to conduct the review.

As the terms of reference set out, the reviewer is expected to draw upon information and analysis provided by HM Treasury and HMRC during the review. HM Treasury and HMRC must make all possible efforts to support the review team’s work by providing them with any information that they request in a timely fashion unless there is a legal reason not to.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_190

Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending business rate relief to include angling boats as small businesses. \p James Murray: Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) is available to businesses with a single property below a set rateable value (RV). Eligible properties with an RV under £12,000 will receive 100 per cent relief and there is also tapered support available to properties valued between £12,000 and £15,000. More information about SBRR can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-business-rate-relief/small-business-rate-relief

Charitable rates relief provides 80% relief to eligible properties. More information about charitable rates relief can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-business-rate-relief/charitable-rate-relief

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rating-manual-section-6-part-3-valuation-of-all-property-classes/section-670-moorings
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_191

Dr Ben Spencer:To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the accessibility to people who are digitally excluded of the consultation on Multinational Top-up Tax and Domestic Top-up Tax: Supplementary draft guidance. \p James Murray: As with all government consultations, paper copies and alternative formats are available free of charge on request. There has been no change to policy on ensuring the accessibility of government consultations, and the approach followed by this administration remains consistent with the approach followed under the previous administration.