Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimates they have made, if any, of the cost savings that would result from increasing the minimum years of National Insurance contributions required for a full State Pension from 35 to 45.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
No such assessment has been made. The number of Qualifying Years required for a full State Pension strikes a balance between achieving wide coverage, maintaining the contributory principle and ensuring the overall affordability of the State Pension.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of people aged 55 to 66 have a National Insurance record of more than 35 years.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Information in the form requested is not readily available and could only be obtained/compiled/collated at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of people aged 55 to 66 have a National Insurance record of more than 40 years.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Information in the form requested is not readily available and could only be obtained/compiled/collated at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the savings to the Exchequer in total cost of paying UK State Pensions in 2023–24 if full state pensions for all newly retired individuals required a National Insurance record of 45 years instead of 35 years, assuming no purchase of additional voluntary years.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We have not made any estimate of the savings to the Exchequer of paying UK State Pensions in 2023–24 if a full state pension for all newly retired individuals required a National Insurance record of 45 years instead of 35 years. There are currently no plans to review the qualifying criteria for the new State Pension.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what the value of the full Basic State Pension weekly payment in 2023–24 would be if the pension had been tied only to average earnings since 2010, rather than the triple lock.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The full weekly amount of Basic State Pension would have been worth £138.05 in 2023-24 if it had been uprated by earnings, rather than the Triple Lock.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made on negotiations for associate membership of the EU Horizon programme; and when they will be in a position to make an announcement.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is moving forward with discussions on the UK’s involvement in Horizon Europe and hope these will be successful. That is the UK’s preference. While the Government hopes negotiations will be successful, participation must work for UK researchers, businesses and taxpayers.
Talks are ongoing and therefore a deal has not yet been agreed. A deadline for these talks has not been set but to provide the industry with certainty, the UK must come to a resolution as quickly as possible. The Government has set out Pioneer, the UK’s bold alternative, which it is ready to implement if association cannot be secured.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to support businesses operating in the travel retail sector, amid rising inflation and constraints on consumer spending resulting from increases in the cost of living.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Our £13.6bn business rates package announced by the Chancellor in the Autumn Statement will help retailers and small businesses. This comes after the Government reversed the Health and Social Care Levy, enabling smaller firms to reduce their National Insurance bills even further by increasing the Employment Allowance.
Furthermore, on 9 January, the Government announced the Energy Bills Discount Scheme. Under the new scheme, eligible non-domestic customers receive a per-unit discount to their energy bills during the 12-month period from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, subject to a threshold level of £107/MWh for gas and £302/MWh of electricity.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much (1) gross tax relief, and (2) National Insurance relief, was given to (a) Defined Benefit or hybrid pension scheme employers, (b) Defined Benefit or hybrid pension scheme members, (c) Defined Contribution workplace scheme employers, (d) Defined Contribution pension scheme auto-enrolment members, and (e) other Defined Contribution pension scheme members, in each of the past three years.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Estimates of the cost of Income Tax and National Insurance Contribution relief on total pension contributions made in 2020 to 2021 can be found in Tables 1 and 2 below. Figures are provided in millions and rounded to the nearest hundred million pounds. Hybrid defined contribution and defined benefit schemes are counted as defined benefit schemes for the purpose of this analysis.
HMRC do not publish estimates of total pension contributions.
Table 1: Income Tax relief on pension contributions in 2020 to 2021 by type of contribution, £million | ||
Income Tax relief in 2020 to 2021 [provisional] on: | Defined benefit scheme | Defined contribution scheme |
Individual contributions to net pay arrangements | 3,600 | 900 |
Individual contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 4,900 |
Salary sacrificed contributions | 1,100 | 3,600 |
Employer contributions to net pay arrangements | 16,800* | 4,100 |
Employer contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 5,900* |
Table 2: National Insurance Contribution (NIC) relief on pension contributions in 2020 to 2021 by type of contribution, £million | ||
NIC relief in 2020 to 2021 [provisional] on: | Defined benefit scheme | Defined contribution scheme |
Class 1 Primary (employee) NIC relief on employer contributions to net pay arrangements | 4,900* | 1,000 |
Class 1 Primary (employee) NIC relief on employer contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 1,500* |
Class 1 Primary (employee) NIC relief on salary sacrificed contributions | 300 | 800 |
Class 1 Secondary (employer) NIC relief on employer contributions to net pay arrangements | 8,200* | 1,800 |
Class 1 Secondary (employer) NIC relief on employer contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 2,700* |
Class 1 Secondary (employer) NIC relief on salary sacrificed contributions | 500 | 1,500 |
*These figures contain forecasts rather than being entirely based on outturn data sources.
Please note that the figures provided are estimates only.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what were the total pension contributions to (1) Defined Benefit or hybrid schemes, (2) Defined Contribution auto-enrolment workplace schemes, and (3) other pension schemes, in each of the past three years.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Estimates of the cost of Income Tax and National Insurance Contribution relief on total pension contributions made in 2020 to 2021 can be found in Tables 1 and 2 below. Figures are provided in millions and rounded to the nearest hundred million pounds. Hybrid defined contribution and defined benefit schemes are counted as defined benefit schemes for the purpose of this analysis.
HMRC do not publish estimates of total pension contributions.
Table 1: Income Tax relief on pension contributions in 2020 to 2021 by type of contribution, £million | ||
Income Tax relief in 2020 to 2021 [provisional] on: | Defined benefit scheme | Defined contribution scheme |
Individual contributions to net pay arrangements | 3,600 | 900 |
Individual contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 4,900 |
Salary sacrificed contributions | 1,100 | 3,600 |
Employer contributions to net pay arrangements | 16,800* | 4,100 |
Employer contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 5,900* |
Table 2: National Insurance Contribution (NIC) relief on pension contributions in 2020 to 2021 by type of contribution, £million | ||
NIC relief in 2020 to 2021 [provisional] on: | Defined benefit scheme | Defined contribution scheme |
Class 1 Primary (employee) NIC relief on employer contributions to net pay arrangements | 4,900* | 1,000 |
Class 1 Primary (employee) NIC relief on employer contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 1,500* |
Class 1 Primary (employee) NIC relief on salary sacrificed contributions | 300 | 800 |
Class 1 Secondary (employer) NIC relief on employer contributions to net pay arrangements | 8,200* | 1,800 |
Class 1 Secondary (employer) NIC relief on employer contributions to relief at source schemes | 0 | 2,700* |
Class 1 Secondary (employer) NIC relief on salary sacrificed contributions | 500 | 1,500 |
*These figures contain forecasts rather than being entirely based on outturn data sources.
Please note that the figures provided are estimates only.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the successes of duty free on arrival stores in the 65 other countries that have legislated for these; and whether they intend to assess the potential merits of implementing arrivals duty free in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Duty-free on arrival would place additional pressure on the public finances to which excise duty makes a significant contribution. Tax generated by the Government helps fund key spending priorities such as important public services, including the NHS, education, and defence.
Although there are no plans to introduce a duty-free on arrival scheme, the Government keeps all taxes under review and welcomes representations to help inform future decisions on tax policy, as part of the tax policy making cycle and Budget process.