Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increases in regulatory alignment with the EU on economic growth in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Integrated markets tend to be more competitive. Businesses typically respond by becoming more innovative and efficient, workers gain from higher productivity, allowing wages to rise, and consumers gain from lower prices.
Leaving the EU increased costs for businesses and consumers, shrank markets for UK exporters, and left our strategic industries exposed. Since March 2020, the OBR has maintained its estimate that productivity will be 4% lower in the long run than it would have been had the UK not withdrawn from the EU. Recent independent studies indicate its GDP impacts could be as much as 6% to 8%.
Aligning UK and EU regulations can reduce some of these frictions, enlarging the market for UK firms, supporting growth in trade and the jobs linked to it.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what analysis HM Treasury has undertaken on the potential effect of UK–EU alignment measures on levels of UK competitiveness.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Integrated markets tend to be more competitive. Businesses typically respond by becoming more innovative and efficient, workers gain from higher productivity, allowing wages to rise, and consumers gain from lower prices.
Leaving the EU increased costs for businesses and consumers, shrank markets for UK exporters, and left our strategic industries exposed. Since March 2020, the OBR has maintained its estimate that productivity will be 4% lower in the long run than it would have been had the UK not withdrawn from the EU. Recent independent studies indicate its GDP impacts could be as much as 6% to 8%.
Aligning UK and EU regulations can reduce some of these frictions, enlarging the market for UK firms, supporting growth in trade and the jobs linked to it.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increases in levels of UK-EU alignment on UK labour markets.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Integrated markets tend to be more competitive. Businesses typically respond by becoming more innovative and efficient, workers gain from higher productivity, allowing wages to rise, and consumers gain from lower prices.
Leaving the EU increased costs for businesses and consumers, shrank markets for UK exporters, and left our strategic industries exposed. Since March 2020, the OBR has maintained its estimate that productivity will be 4% lower in the long run than it would have been had the UK not withdrawn from the EU. Recent independent studies indicate its GDP impacts could be as much as 6% to 8%.
Aligning UK and EU regulations can reduce some of these frictions, enlarging the market for UK firms, supporting growth in trade and the jobs linked to it.
Asked by: Laurence Turner (Labour - Birmingham Northfield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether banking hubs are obliged to accept cheque deposits.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises that cheques remain an important payment method for some people. Decisions on whether cheque deposits are accepted and processed through Post Office counters in banking hubs are commercial matters for individual banks, based on their arrangements with the Post Office and Cash Access UK, which operates banking hubs.
Most retail banks currently accept cheque deposits at banking hubs and the Government expects firms to ensure that customers can continue to access the services they need.
Where this service is not available at a banking hub counter, customers continue to have alternative options to pay in cheques, including at bank branches and by post, or digitally via mobile banking apps using cheque imaging technology.
Any customers affected by changes to cheque depositing services offered through banking hubs are encouraged to contact their bank directly to request information about the bank’s plans to support them.
The Government continues to engage with the banking industry banking industry, the Post Office and Cash Access UK to improve the consistency and level of services provided through banking hubs, so that they meet the needs of communities across the UK.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who she has had discussions with in the Northern Ireland Executive on the Credit Union Common Bond Reform Call for Evidence Response.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The call for evidence response on credit union common bond reform in Great Britain was published on 18 March 2026. The call for evidence itself ran from November 2024 to March 2025 and was open to all to submit responses. As credit union policy is devolved to Northern Ireland, the measures announced in the government’s response apply only to Great Britain.
HM Treasury has kept the Northern Ireland Executive informed. The government has written to ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive to notify them of the legislative changes being taken forward in Great Britain. Treasury officials also engaged with counterparts in the Northern Ireland Executive during the call for evidence, and this engagement is continuing following publication of the response.
These reforms will modernise the common bond framework, support the growth of the credit union sector, and help ensure that it can continue to deliver positive outcomes for members and communities across Great Britain.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential economic impact on Scottish communities of the estimated £551 million shortfall between the Financial Conduct Authority's proposed motor finance redress scheme pay outs and potential court awards as outlined in the APPG on Fair Banking Report on Car Finance redress published in November 2025.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government wants to see this issue resolved in an efficient and orderly way that provides certainty for consumers and firms.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), as the independent regulator, has consulted on proposals for a motor finance consumer redress scheme. The FCA has announced that it will set out its final approach to motor finance redress on 30 March: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/statements/timing-fca-motor-finance-announcement.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Financial Conduct Authority regarding its proposal to set compensatory interest for motor finance redress at the Bank of England base rate plus one per cent, in the context courts recently awarding eight per cent to compensate vulnerable consumers for consequential financial losses.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government wants to see this issue resolved in an efficient and orderly way that provides certainty for consumers and firms.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), as the independent regulator, has consulted on proposals for a motor finance consumer redress scheme. The FCA has announced that it will set out its final approach to motor finance redress on 30 March: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/statements/timing-fca-motor-finance-announcement.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the Equitable Members' Action Group’s analysis of Government spending on the compensation package for people affected by financial losses related to Equitable Life policies, published in January 2026.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Equitable Life Payment Scheme has been fully wound down and closed since 2016. The only remaining part of the Payment Scheme in operation is the annual payments made to eligible With-Profit-Annuitants and the Scheme is on track to distribute the remainder of the £1.5 billion as planned.
There are no plans to reopen any decisions relating to the Payment Scheme or review the £1.5 billion funding allocation previously made to it. Further guidance on the status of the Payment Scheme after closure is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equitable-life-payment-scheme#closure-of-the-scheme.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to ensure that contingency funding linked to the Equitable Life Payment Scheme will be used to compensate Equitable Life policyholders.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Equitable Life Payment Scheme has been fully wound down and closed since 2016. The only remaining part of the Payment Scheme in operation is the annual payments made to eligible With-Profit-Annuitants and the Scheme is on track to distribute the remainder of the £1.5 billion as planned.
There are no plans to reopen any decisions relating to the Payment Scheme or review the £1.5 billion funding allocation previously made to it. Further guidance on the status of the Payment Scheme after closure is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equitable-life-payment-scheme#closure-of-the-scheme.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much of the money allocated to the Equitable Life compensation fund is expected to be retained by her Department, in the context of contingency funds.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Equitable Life Payment Scheme has been fully wound down and closed since 2016. The only remaining part of the Payment Scheme in operation is the annual payments made to eligible With-Profit-Annuitants and the Scheme is on track to distribute the remainder of the £1.5 billion as planned.
There are no plans to reopen any decisions relating to the Payment Scheme or review the £1.5 billion funding allocation previously made to it. Further guidance on the status of the Payment Scheme after closure is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equitable-life-payment-scheme#closure-of-the-scheme.