Asked by: Lord Naseby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on UK business of the proposal from the EU Commission for a European track and trace for the tobacco market; and what steps they are taking to protect UK interests.
Answered by Lord Bates
The illicit tobacco trade is a global problem, and the introduction of a track and trace system will be an important step forward in tackling this issue.
The government is continuing to study the draft implementing legislation for Article 15 of the EU Tobacco Products Directive and is discussing the drafts with the Commission and other Member States.
In considering the proposed EU regulations, the government is concerned to ensure they are proportionate, efficient, effective, can be implemented in the timescale set and keep burdens on legitimate business to a minimum while delivering the required objectives.
The government is aware of some concerns raised by businesses affected and will continue to assess the impact of the legislation and the timetable for implementation as the drafts develop.
Asked by: Lord Naseby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on UK businesses of the implementation of the EU Commission proposals for a track and trace scheme for the tobacco market; and whether they support those proposals.
Answered by Lord Bates
The illicit tobacco trade is a global problem, and the introduction of a track and trace system will be an important step forward in tackling this issue.
The government is continuing to study the draft implementing legislation for Article 15 of the EU Tobacco Products Directive and is discussing the drafts with the Commission and other Member States.
In considering the proposed EU regulations, the government is concerned to ensure they are proportionate, efficient, effective, can be implemented in the timescale set and keep burdens on legitimate business to a minimum while delivering the required objectives.
The government is aware of some concerns raised by businesses affected and will continue to assess the impact of the legislation and the timetable for implementation as the drafts develop.
Asked by: Lord Naseby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish annually a list of Alternative Investment Market companies that qualify for Inheritance Tax relief.
Answered by Lord O'Neill of Gatley
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) do not have a list of Alternative Investment Market companies that qualify for Business Property Relief.
The claim to the relief will depend on the circumstances of each case. Shares in a company might no longer qualify for Business Property Relief if the company went into liquidation or moved to a full listing on the UK Stock Exchange after publication. Any information provided by HMRC about a company may become out of date quickly raising the risk that relief is claimed incorrectly.
Asked by: Lord Naseby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they expect to issue the detailed guidance to parents and guardians concerning the transfer of Child Trust Fund Accounts to Junior ISAs.
Answered by Lord Deighton
The Government is currently legislating to permit the transfer of funds from a Child Trust Fund to a Junior ISA from 6 April. Parents and guardians will be able to access information concerning transfers at GOV.UK, as well as from account providers and consumer advice websites and organisations in due course.
Asked by: Lord Naseby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will undertake a review of the difficulties experienced at the launch of National Savings and Investments pensioner bonds with particular attention to the failure of the website.
Answered by Lord Deighton
The introduction of the 65+ “Pensioner” Bond has seen the biggest sale of any retail financial product in Britain’s modern history, with over £7.5 billion sold to date. Demand in the first few days was exceptionally high but tens of thousands of savers did successfully purchase bonds during this period, and hundreds of thousands have done so since. National Savings & Investments (NS&I) was quick to respond to the issues faced by some customers in the opening days, for example by adding further call centre staff to manage the high volume of calls. The website is now fully operational, calls are being answered with minimal waiting times, and NS&I now have the capacity to field remaining demand pressures.
Following this unprecedented demand, the government has also extended the availability of the bonds up to 15 May, to ensure all pensioners aged 65 and over who want to benefit from these bonds will have time to do so.
Low interest rates have played an important part in stimulating the recovery. But there are those – especially pensioners – who rely on a reasonable rate of interest on their savings. These new savings bonds pay a market leading rate and are designed to help support those who rely on their savings in retirement.