Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that customs controls do not disproportionately affect small and medium-sized businesses trading between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to ensuring smooth trade flows within the UK internal market.
The UK Internal Market Scheme (UKIMS) replaced the previous UK Trader Scheme on 30 September 2023. UKIMS allows a much wider range of businesses to move goods into Northern Ireland under the existing ‘not at risk’ arrangements than the previous scheme, with over 3,000 new businesses now authorised.
Under UKIMS, the turnover threshold below which companies involved in processing can move eligible goods under the scheme quadrupled from the old £500,000 limit up to £2m, benefiting SMEs. From 30 September 2024, UKIMS traders will also be able to benefit from the new simplified processes for UK internal market movements which will scrap burdensome supplementary declarations and allow for the use of a simpler dataset based on standard commercial information as opposed to full customs declarations as is required currently.
There is tailored support available for all sizes of businesses trading between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, including small and medium-sized businesses, via the free-to-use Trader Support Service (TSS).
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in March in simplifying trade procedures between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, to minimise disruption for businesses.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to ensuring smooth trade flows within the UK internal market.
The UK Internal Market Scheme (UKIMS) replaced the previous UK Trader Scheme on 30 September 2023, allowing a much wider range of businesses to move goods into Northern Ireland under the existing ‘not at risk’ arrangements, with over 3,000 new businesses now authorised.
From 30 September 2024, UKIMS traders will also be able to benefit from the new simplified processes for UK internal market movements which will scrap burdensome supplementary declarations and allow for the use of a simpler dataset based on standard commercial information as opposed to full customs declarations as is required currently.
There is also tailored support available for businesses trading between Great Britain and Northern Ireland via the free-to-use Trader Support Service (TSS).
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure a consistent and friction-free supply of goods to Northern Ireland from Great Britain.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to ensuring smooth trade flows within the UK internal market.
The UK Internal Market Scheme (UKIMS) replaced the previous UK Trader Scheme on 30 September 2023, allowing a much wider range of businesses to move goods into Northern Ireland under the existing ‘not at risk’ arrangements, with over 3,000 new businesses now authorised.
From 30 September 2024, UKIMS traders will also be able to benefit from the new simplified processes for UK internal market movements which will scrap burdensome supplementary declarations and allow for the use of a simpler dataset based on standard commercial information as opposed to full customs declarations as is required currently.
There is also tailored support available for businesses trading between Great Britain and Northern Ireland via the free-to-use Trader Support Service (TSS).
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to increase the mileage allowance for frontline care workers given the rising cost of fuel.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
The Approved Mileage Allowance Payment (AMAP) rates aim to reflect running costs including fuel, servicing and depreciation. Depreciation is estimated to constitute the most significant proportion of the AMAPs.
Most domiciliary care staff are employed by private providers who decide their mileage reimbursement rate. Employers, including those of care staff, are not required to use AMAPs. Instead, they can agree to reimburse the actual cost incurred, where individuals can provide evidence of the expenditure, without an Income Tax or National Insurance charge arising.
If an employee is paid less than the approved amount, they are entitled to claim tax relief (Mileage Allowance Relief) on the shortfall. The maximum MAR claim is set to the same level as the AMAP rates.
As with all taxes and allowances, the Government keeps AMAP rates under review and any changes are considered by the Chancellor.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the amount of illegal fuel that has been smuggled into the United Kingdom from the Republic of Ireland in each of the last five years.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
Cross-border cooperation is a key element of HMRC’s operational response to fuel fraud and we will continue to collaborate with Ireland and others to ensure we are well placed to respond quickly and decisively to detect and prevent this type of illegal activity. This co-operation, as well as a multi-agency approach, has driven down the assessed tax gap for the illicit fuel market share in Northern Ireland from 19% in 2005-06, to a low of 6% in the latest figures published for 2018-19. Similarly, in that period, the assessed tax gap for illicit fuel for Great Britain has reduced from 5% to 1%. Published Tax Gap assessments for illicit fuel have either reduced or remained static for the last five years.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide support to those who have been ineligible for COVID-19 related financial support packages during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
Throughout the pandemic, the government has sought to protect people’s jobs and livelihoods while also supporting businesses and public services across the UK. To do this, the government has put in place an economic package of support which will provide businesses and individuals with certainty over the coming months, even as measures to prevent further spread of the virus change. The cumulative cost to the Government of this support since the start of the pandemic is £352 billion.
This support includes a new Restart Grant of up to £18,000 to over 680,000 business premises, giving them the cash certainty they need to plan ahead and safely relaunch trading over the coming months. Local authorities will also receive an additional £425 million of discretionary business grant funding under the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG), on top of the £1.6 billion already allocated to allow them to support their local businesses. This means local authorities will have received over £2.1 billion of discretionary grant funding to support businesses which are not eligible for Restart Grants, but which are nonetheless experiencing a severe impact on their business due to public health restrictions.
In order to support businesses to retain their employees and protect the UK economy, the Chancellor has extended both the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) until September 2021. In Northern Ireland, the CJRS has supported more than 280,000 jobs since the scheme’s inception, and as of 31 January, the SEISS provided £570 million of support to self-employed individuals in Northern Ireland. The fourth and fifth SEISS grants are an estimated £13.5 billion of additional support, taking total support for the self-employed to over £33 billion. The Government has also announced a major improvement in access to the self-employed scheme. As the deadline for 2019-20 tax returns has now passed, HMRC will use these tax returns for the fourth and fifth grants, provided they were submitted by 2 March. This means more than 600,000 people, many of whom became self-employed in 2019-20, may now be able to claim the fourth and fifth grants, bringing the total number of people who could be eligible to 3.7 million.
Businesses have also received billions in loans, tax deferrals, Business Rate reliefs, and general and sector-specific grants. And individuals and families have benefited from increased welfare payments, enhanced statutory sick pay, a stay on repossession proceedings and mortgage holidays. But we must recognise that it will not be possible to preserve every job or business indefinitely, nor stand in the way of the economy adapting and people finding new jobs or starting new businesses. As measures to control the virus change, it is right that government support should also evolve. Because of this, we continue to take a flexible approach and keep all impacts and policies under review.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the digitalisation of banking and billing services on elderly people.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The retail sector is evolving, as more consumers and businesses opt for the convenience, security, and speed of digital payments and digital banking.
While these innovations have brought considerable benefits to many consumers, the Government recognises that some people continue to prefer to access their banking and payments through more traditional channels. Though the Government does not make direct assessments of the impact of digitalisation of banking and billing services on the elderly, it firmly believes that it is vital to ensure that all customers, including the elderly, have suitable access to banking and bill payment services.
That is why UK banks and building societies are required to provide a prompt, efficient and fair service to all of their customers, including the elderly, as set out in the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Principles of Business. For example, if a customer did not have access to the internet, then the FCA would expect the customers’ bank to provide paper bank statements to them instead.
For billing services, the energy regulator Ofgem requires energy suppliers to maintain a Priority Services Register of customers in vulnerable circumstances, which includes customers of pensionable age. A range of protections are available to these customers, including the provision of account and bill information in an accessible format.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of Great Britain to Northern Ireland parcel delivery services; and what assessment they have made of the impact of the Northern Ireland Protocol on such services.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
Earlier this month, the Government took several temporary operational steps to avoid disruptive cliff edges which could have affected the delivery of parcel services. These included extending the temporary arrangements that the Government set out on parcels before the end of the transition period, giving further time to parcel operators to prepare for new requirements and minimise the impact on day-to-day lives in Northern Ireland.
The Government remains committed to meeting its obligations in the Northern Ireland Protocol and to doing so in a pragmatic and proportionate way, taking full account of the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement. The Government is continuing to support parcel operators and businesses across sectors to adapt to the new trading arrangements with the EU.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much value-added tax was collected from adult gaming centres in England and Wales in (1) 2019, and (2) 2020 to date.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
HM Revenue and Customs do not hold data on VAT collected specifically from adult gaming centres.
HMRC record and publish annually details of VAT receipts and liabilities across trade sectors and subsectors, but not at this level of detail.
The provision of facilities for betting and gaming is usually exempt from VAT.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the cost of training HM Revenue and Customs officers in Northern Ireland in the use of vehicle stop and search powers since January 2019.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
Since January 2019, HM Revenue & Customs have spent £1,440 in training officers in Northern Ireland in the use of vehicle stop and search powers.