Asked by: Lord Farmer (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what research, if any, they have carried out or commissioned on the reasons for the level of take up of the marriage allowance.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Marriage Allowance allows a spouse or civil partner to transfer ten per cent of their income tax personal allowance, as long as the partner is not paying tax at higher rates.
The most recent estimates for the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in HMRC’s published tax relief statistics, last updated in January 2026. This is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-reliefs/tax-relief-statistics-january-2026.
The number of Marriage Allowance claimants was estimated at 2,440,000 for the 2023-2024 tax year and the estimated cost is projected to be £590 million for the 2025-2026 tax year. Estimates of the number of claimants are the latest available and reflect only successful claimants up to that point in time and not the anticipated full take up when all backdated claims have been made in future tax years (up to 4 years later).
Data for previous tax years (up to 6 years) on the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in the non-structural tax relief statistics, which is available at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/main-tax-expenditures-and-structural-reliefs/non-structural-tax-relief-statistics-december-2024. This is summarised below.
Tax Year | Cost (£ million) | Number of Claimants |
2019–2020 | 520 | 2,020,000 |
2020–2021 | 560 | 2,170,000 |
2021–2022 | 560 | 2,280,000 |
2022–2023 | 580 | 2,350,000 |
2023–2024 (estimated) | 580 | 2,440,000 |
2024–2025 (estimated) | 580 | Not stated |
HMRC does not produce household-level analysis for Marriage Allowance eligibility.
HMRC’s ongoing communications campaign for Marriage Allowance seeks to raise awareness of the eligibility criteria for the allowance, encourage take-up and educate customers on how to claim. It consists of regular promotional activity throughout the year bolstered by paid-for activity at key times of increased interest or engagement in the allowance for customers.
Asked by: Lord Farmer (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many couples have (1) been eligible to claim the marriage allowance, and (2) claimed the marriage allowance, year on year, since its introduction.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Marriage Allowance allows a spouse or civil partner to transfer ten per cent of their income tax personal allowance, as long as the partner is not paying tax at higher rates.
The most recent estimates for the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in HMRC’s published tax relief statistics, last updated in January 2026. This is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-reliefs/tax-relief-statistics-january-2026.
The number of Marriage Allowance claimants was estimated at 2,440,000 for the 2023-2024 tax year and the estimated cost is projected to be £590 million for the 2025-2026 tax year. Estimates of the number of claimants are the latest available and reflect only successful claimants up to that point in time and not the anticipated full take up when all backdated claims have been made in future tax years (up to 4 years later).
Data for previous tax years (up to 6 years) on the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in the non-structural tax relief statistics, which is available at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/main-tax-expenditures-and-structural-reliefs/non-structural-tax-relief-statistics-december-2024. This is summarised below.
Tax Year | Cost (£ million) | Number of Claimants |
2019–2020 | 520 | 2,020,000 |
2020–2021 | 560 | 2,170,000 |
2021–2022 | 560 | 2,280,000 |
2022–2023 | 580 | 2,350,000 |
2023–2024 (estimated) | 580 | 2,440,000 |
2024–2025 (estimated) | 580 | Not stated |
HMRC does not produce household-level analysis for Marriage Allowance eligibility.
HMRC’s ongoing communications campaign for Marriage Allowance seeks to raise awareness of the eligibility criteria for the allowance, encourage take-up and educate customers on how to claim. It consists of regular promotional activity throughout the year bolstered by paid-for activity at key times of increased interest or engagement in the allowance for customers.
Asked by: Lord Farmer (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what distributional analysis they have done on the (1) eligibility, and (2) take up, of the marriage allowance since its introduction, by age and income decile.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Marriage Allowance allows a spouse or civil partner to transfer ten per cent of their income tax personal allowance, as long as the partner is not paying tax at higher rates.
The most recent estimates for the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in HMRC’s published tax relief statistics, last updated in January 2026. This is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-reliefs/tax-relief-statistics-january-2026.
The number of Marriage Allowance claimants was estimated at 2,440,000 for the 2023-2024 tax year and the estimated cost is projected to be £590 million for the 2025-2026 tax year. Estimates of the number of claimants are the latest available and reflect only successful claimants up to that point in time and not the anticipated full take up when all backdated claims have been made in future tax years (up to 4 years later).
Data for previous tax years (up to 6 years) on the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in the non-structural tax relief statistics, which is available at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/main-tax-expenditures-and-structural-reliefs/non-structural-tax-relief-statistics-december-2024. This is summarised below.
Tax Year | Cost (£ million) | Number of Claimants |
2019–2020 | 520 | 2,020,000 |
2020–2021 | 560 | 2,170,000 |
2021–2022 | 560 | 2,280,000 |
2022–2023 | 580 | 2,350,000 |
2023–2024 (estimated) | 580 | 2,440,000 |
2024–2025 (estimated) | 580 | Not stated |
HMRC does not produce household-level analysis for Marriage Allowance eligibility.
HMRC’s ongoing communications campaign for Marriage Allowance seeks to raise awareness of the eligibility criteria for the allowance, encourage take-up and educate customers on how to claim. It consists of regular promotional activity throughout the year bolstered by paid-for activity at key times of increased interest or engagement in the allowance for customers.
Asked by: Lord Farmer (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much has been underspent, year on year, from projected budgets of foregone revenue due to couples claiming the marriage allowance.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Marriage Allowance allows a spouse or civil partner to transfer ten per cent of their income tax personal allowance, as long as the partner is not paying tax at higher rates.
The most recent estimates for the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in HMRC’s published tax relief statistics, last updated in January 2026. This is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-reliefs/tax-relief-statistics-january-2026.
The number of Marriage Allowance claimants was estimated at 2,440,000 for the 2023-2024 tax year and the estimated cost is projected to be £590 million for the 2025-2026 tax year. Estimates of the number of claimants are the latest available and reflect only successful claimants up to that point in time and not the anticipated full take up when all backdated claims have been made in future tax years (up to 4 years later).
Data for previous tax years (up to 6 years) on the cost and uptake of Marriage Allowance can be found in the non-structural tax relief statistics, which is available at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/main-tax-expenditures-and-structural-reliefs/non-structural-tax-relief-statistics-december-2024. This is summarised below.
Tax Year | Cost (£ million) | Number of Claimants |
2019–2020 | 520 | 2,020,000 |
2020–2021 | 560 | 2,170,000 |
2021–2022 | 560 | 2,280,000 |
2022–2023 | 580 | 2,350,000 |
2023–2024 (estimated) | 580 | 2,440,000 |
2024–2025 (estimated) | 580 | Not stated |
HMRC does not produce household-level analysis for Marriage Allowance eligibility.
HMRC’s ongoing communications campaign for Marriage Allowance seeks to raise awareness of the eligibility criteria for the allowance, encourage take-up and educate customers on how to claim. It consists of regular promotional activity throughout the year bolstered by paid-for activity at key times of increased interest or engagement in the allowance for customers.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much of the £28.7 billion of frozen Russian assets in the UK has been released to support victims of the conflict in Ukraine; and what progress they have made in the transfer by Roman Abramovich of £2.5 billion from the sale of Chelsea Football Club to a humanitarian cause in Ukraine.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The OFSI Annual Review 2024-2025 in year reporting sets out that OFSI have been notified of approximately £28.7bn in assets frozen in connection with the Russia sanctions regime since February 2022. Although these assets are frozen and cannot be accessed, they remain the property of the individuals and entities designated under the sanctions.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine the Government has provided £21.8 billion in support to Ukraine and has committed to providing a further £3bn a year for as long as it takes.
The Government has taken significant action to enable the donation of the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club to humanitarian causes in Ukraine. On 17 December 2025, HM Treasury issued a licence permitting the transfer of the over £2.5 billion sale proceeds into a new charitable foundation for exclusively humanitarian purposes in Ukraine. The licence provides a clear legal route for the funds to be used as intended, consistent with Abramovich’s commitment that they should benefit victims of the war.
The Government is urging him to act without delay and will consider any proposal he makes to use this route to establish the foundation and transfer the funds.
Should Abramovich fail to free the funds quickly, the UK Government is fully prepared to take him to court if necessary to enforce the agreement reached with him in 2022.
Asked by: Lord Mackinlay of Richborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of Making Tax Digital, if any, on the tax gap attributable to intentional tax evasion; and what plans they have to implement such a scheme directly to address that issue.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax helps taxpayers pay the right amount of tax. It is expected to generate almost £1 billion in additional tax revenue in 2030–31 by encouraging timely and accurate record keeping and reducing that part of the tax gap caused by taxpayer errors and failure to take reasonable care.
HMRC is committed to closing the tax gap further and tackling other types of non-compliance such as tax evasion, tax avoidance, criminal attacks, hidden economy activity, legal interpretation issues, and non-payment.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to help increase economic growth in Norfolk.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government is restoring stability, increasing investment, and reforming the economy to drive growth across every region of the UK.
Norfolk will receive £32.5 million in Local Transport Grant funding enabling local authorities to deliver transport improvements including more zero emission buses, cycleways, accessibility and congestion improvement measures.
The record breaking results of our most recent offshore wind auction will support projects in the region, delivering further local jobs and growth.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, her Department was invited by the Office for National Statistics to provide evidence or input into its review of the ethnicity harmonised standard.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
A review of the harmonised standard for ethnicity data collection is underway by the Government Statistical Service Harmonisation team.
A public consultation between October 2025 and February 2026 sought views from a wide range of users, including Government Departments and public bodies, to understand user needs for ethnic group data. This was supplemented by a programme of engagement activity, including with representatives of all government departments.
ONS have committed to providing an initial response to the public consultation in April, and a full report on the consultation in late summer 2026 will include more detailed information on the departments that responded to the consultation.
Asked by: Jessica Toale (Labour - Bournemouth West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she has taken with Cabinet colleagues to increase local roads maintenance funding.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government has committed a record level of funding for local authorities to repair, renew and fix potholes; totalling over £2 billion annually by 2029-30. This is double the amount provided by the previous government – and it ensures that we will exceed our manifesto commitment to fix an additional 1 million potholes in each year of this Parliament.
Asked by: Joe Morris (Labour - Hexham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she has taken with Cabinet colleagues to increase local roads maintenance funding.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government has committed a record level of funding for local authorities to repair, renew and fix potholes; totalling over £2 billion annually by 2029-30. This is double the amount provided by the previous government – and it ensures that we will exceed our manifesto commitment to fix an additional 1 million potholes in each year of this Parliament.