Asked by: Alec Shelbrooke (Conservative - Wetherby and Easingwold)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will review the scope of the Plastics Packaging Tax to exempt EN 13432–certified compostable materials; and what assessment has been made of the potential impact of including compostable materials within the tax on growth and innovation in the biodegradable and biobased materials industry and on the delivery of the UK’s circular economy objectives.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policymaking process. The Plastic Packaging Tax provides a price incentive for businesses to use recycled plastic in the manufacture of plastic packaging.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they intend to ensure consumer protection and regulatory compliance in blockchain and AI-enabled tokenised deposit models in the home-buying and mortgage markets.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Conduct Authority is responsible for the regulation of the mortgage market. All FCA-authorised firms are required to comply with the Consumer Duty, which sets high standards of consumer protections and requires firms to put their customers’ needs first.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is currently consulting on reforms to the home buying and selling process. The Government has made clear its objectives that reform should support faster, more reliable transactions and reduced fall throughs and risks.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential for AI and digital technology to reduce a) tax evasion and b) tax avoidance.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC is expanding its use of AI to help tackle the tax gap and The Hon gentleman’s Telford constituency is an important hub for HMRC’s digital and AI work. HMRC’s expansion includes how they focus their compliance work through new risk-targeting capabilities to identify cases for investigation, improving case selection. It also means using AI to identify nascent issues with the tax system, so they can act rapidly to prevent them before they grow.
This year, HMRC has also significantly invested in partnering with the private sector to explore the use of novel analytical techniques and data to identify deliberate evasion.
HMRC is harnessing artificial intelligence to deliver a more efficient and professional service for customers. They will use new technology as a tool to help them to do their jobs more effectively. Greater use of AI will mean that staff spend less time on admin and more time helping taxpayers. It will also help HMRC better target their action against fraud and evasion, to bring in more money for public services.
Artificial intelligence supports some of their processes but never replaces human decision-making and oversight. HMRC remains committed to the safe use of these technologies, underpinned by strict data protection, security and ethical standards. In cases where AI is used in a way that could impact customer outcomes, HMRC ensures that results are explainable and that there is always human oversight. This means that even when AI is used to support decision-making, final decisions are always made by experienced, trained case workers.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to liquidate Russian assets currently frozen in the UK; and whether they have discussed the implications of that action with (1) leaders of the EU, and (2) President Trump.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Chancellor is actively engaging with our EU and G7 partners to explore options for using the full value of Russian sovereign assets immobilised across the G7, in line with international law.
The Government remains committed to ensuring Russia is held accountable for the damage it has caused, and continues to cause, in Ukraine. Alongside our G7 partners, the UK has pledged to maintain the sanctions in Russia’s sovereign assets within our jurisdiction until Russia has paid compensation to Ukraine.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Motability Foundation on the the potential impact of her Department's changes to (a) VAT and (b) Insurance Premium Tax for the Motability Foundation on (i) funding for the Mobility Foundation and (ii) the ability of the Foundation to cross-subsidise its work to support the most vulnerable residents.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Prior to announcing tax changes to the Motability Scheme at Budget 2025, the Government engaged with the Motability Foundation to understand how tax changes would impact the Motability Scheme and their customers.
For customers who cannot afford essential costs or need more complex adaptations, the Motability Foundation will continue to provide means-tested grants to those most in need of financial help. In 2024/25, these grants totalled £59.3 million, supporting over 10,000 customers.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2025 to Question 97744 on Council Tax: Sutton Coldfield, if she will publish the evidential basis for the claim that the surcharge will raise £400m in revenue in 2028/29.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The policy costing note for the High Value Council Tax Surcharge is available on page 51 of the Budget 2025 policy costings document:
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which Valuation Office Agency special category code hereditaments are eligible for the 2026-27 Retail, Hospitality and Leisure multipliers.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
VOA Special Category codes do not determine eligibility for RHL multipliers. Local authorities are responsible for administering the business rates multipliers for qualifying Retail, Hospitality and Leisure properties.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the revaluation of business rates on levels of employment in North Yorkshire.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base.
At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government announced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years, including protection for ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
More broadly, the Government is delivering a long overdue reform to rebalance the business rates system and support the high street, as promised in our manifesto. The Government is doing this by introducing permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates are worth nearly £900 million per year, and will benefit over 750,000 properties.
The new RHL tax rates replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since COVID. Unlike RHL relief, the new rates are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what process will be used to value family businesses after the changes to Business Property Relief are introduced.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The inheritance tax value of a person’s estate is the open market value of all their assets and liabilities. The forthcoming changes to business property relief will not change the existing rules on valuing a business. Valuation assumes a sale between a hypothetical seller and buyer, reflecting reality for all other factors such as industry conditions, trading history, and prospects, according to industry standards.
Asked by: Sarah Pochin (Reform UK - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of recent public sector pay settlements on trends in the level of public sector net borrowing in future financial years.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
No additional central funding has been given to Departments for the 2025/26 pay awards beyond their existing funding allocations, and this will be the case for the remainder of the Spending Review period. This means we will not be borrowing more or raising taxes to fund higher pay awards, nor will there be an impact on the fiscal rules.