Asked by: Lord Hacking (Labour - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether, in implementing the proposed VAT on Independent School Fees, they will be changing the current practice, where each VAT registered entity is not required to identify its commercial activity or activities or place itself in any specific category; and, if so, how.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
There are no plans to change the information businesses are required to provide when registering for VAT in respect of private schools.
When a business registers for VAT it needs to provide details about the business and its activities. This includes a Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) trade classification code which is a mandatory requirement. This allows HMRC to determine the type of trade that the business is involved in. Further guidance on what private schools need to do to register for VAT can be found on GOV.UK
Asked by: Lord Hacking (Labour - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether, in implementing their proposed VAT policy on independent school fees, they will be changing the current practice, where the only information (short of an audit or investigation) available to HMRC from quarterly VAT returns, is the total of VAT collected and the total VAT paid out without further identifications; and, if so, how.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
There are no plans to change the information that is collected on a VAT return in respect of private schools.
On the VAT return, businesses are required to include information on their total sales and purchases, the amount of VAT they owe and the amount of VAT they can reclaim. Further guidance on the fields included on a VAT return and what should be included in each box can be found on Gov.UK . HMRC may request additional information as part of any enquiries.
Asked by: Lord Hacking (Labour - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Penn on 19 July (HL Deb col 2319), whether their "plans for enhanced requirements applying to the termination of payment accounts" will include a requirement for banks to give customers sufficient reasons about the termination of an account whatever may be its terms and conditions.
Answered by Baroness Penn
The Government published its policy statement on 21 July, setting out its plans to strengthen requirements relating to payment account contract terminations. These changes will increase the minimum notice period in cases of contract termination to 90 days – giving customers more time to challenge a decision through the Financial Ombudsman Service, or find a replacement bank.
Banks will also be required to spell out to the affected customer why they are terminating their account – increasing transparency and aiding customers’ ability to appeal decisions. This requirement will be subject to limited exceptions where firms need to comply with existing legal obligations, for example, under financial crime law.
The Treasury is working closely with industry, law enforcement and regulatory partners to ensure that expectations regarding these new requirements are clear.