Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether there are categories of employed payers of income tax and national insurance who are not included in the category of “working people”.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to not raising taxes on working people, which is why it is not increasing the basic, higher or additional rates of income tax, their National Insurance contributions or VAT.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what definitions they intend by the use of the terms “small business”, “family business” and “family farm” in the Autumn Budget.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Small businesses are vital to high streets and communities, and essential to the success of the government’s growth mission. The UK has a wide variety of businesses, which interact with the tax system in different ways. As a result, the characteristics of a small business can vary depending on the nature of the specific policy. The eligibility or applicability of individual policies will be set out in the relevant documentation for those policies.
The Government announced a range of reforms at Autumn Budget 2024 supporting small businesses. These include:
It is expected that up to around 2,000 estates will be affected by the changes to APR and BPR. Up to around 520 of these are expected to relate to claims for APR (including those that also claim for BPR), and this number falls to around 430 when claims that include AIM shares are excluded. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (or those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) each year are expected to be unaffected by these reforms.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the work of the UK Infrastructure Bank.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
On 14 October the Chancellor announced the creation of the National Wealth Fund (NWF). Building on the UK Infrastructure Bank’s leadership and expertise, the NWF will go further to catalyse more private investment.
To mobilise private investment at pace, the Government has turbocharged the NWF to be more catalytic by equipping it with the financial products, mandate and risk capital to catalyse private capital most effectively. It will have a total capitalisation of £27.8bn, inheriting UKIB’s existing capitalisation with an additional £5.8bn which will be committed over this Parliament.
Going forward, the NWF will have a broader mandate, extending beyond infrastructure to support delivery of the wider Industrial Strategy in areas where there is an undersupply in private finance, working alongside the British Business Bank.
It will take a proactive approach, with increased resources and focus to conduct more outreach, identifying expanded project pipelines and structure innovative transactions. It will also have a strong regional mandate to unleash the full potential of our cities and regions. These changes will ensure that the NWF can catalyse additional investment, delivering impactful projects and unlocking growth opportunities across the UK.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the sustainability of UK debt levels.
Answered by Baroness Penn
The Government is committed to ensuring debt is on a sustainable footing. This is reflected in the Prime Minister’s priority to reduce national debt in the medium term and the legally binding fiscal rule to have debt as a share of GDP to be projected to fall in the fifth year of the forecast horizon.
The independent OBR assesses performance against the fiscal rules twice a year alongside each fiscal event. In March 2023, the OBR confirmed that the fiscal rules had been met with debt falling as a percentage of GDP in 2027-28. The OBR will publish an updated economic and fiscal forecast on 22 November alongside the Autumn Statement
In the Charter for Budget Responsibility, the Government requires the OBR to publish an annual Fiscal Risks and Sustainability report, which includes long-run projections of the Government finances. The government will respond to the latest FRS at a future fiscal event. To manage longer-term spending pressures and maintain high quality public services, the Chancellor has recently announced a major public sector productivity programme.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce measures to improve awareness and uptake of Gift Aid.
Answered by Baroness Penn
The Government keeps all taxes and reliefs under review, and is committed to providing support to the charitable sector worth over £5 billion per year. Gift Aid - a key part of this- is worth £1.4 billion per year to charities and £500 million to their donors (through higher rate relief).
HMRC works closely and regularly with representatives from across the charity sector reviewing Gift Aid and exploring ways in which it can be improved and made fit for the future, as well as raising awareness amongst donors. It places a high priority on this collaborative work, which remains ongoing, and is always interested in ideas to improve the take-up and raise awareness of Gift Aid.
Charities also have a key role to play in raising awareness of Gift Aid, as they are best placed to educate eligible donors about the benefits of Gift Aid at the point of donation.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the current Gift Aid scheme.
Answered by Baroness Penn
The Government keeps all taxes and reliefs under review, and is committed to providing support to the charitable sector worth over £5 billion per year. Gift Aid - a key part of this- is worth £1.4 billion per year to charities and £500 million to their donors (through higher rate relief).
HMRC works closely and regularly with representatives from across the charity sector reviewing Gift Aid and exploring ways in which it can be improved and made fit for the future, as well as raising awareness amongst donors. It places a high priority on this collaborative work, which remains ongoing, and is always interested in ideas to improve the take-up and raise awareness of Gift Aid.
Charities also have a key role to play in raising awareness of Gift Aid, as they are best placed to educate eligible donors about the benefits of Gift Aid at the point of donation.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of powers by the Financial Conduct Authority to ensure the continued availability of cash withdrawal and deposit facilities in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Penn
To ensure access to cash is protected, the government is currently taking legislation through Parliament as part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill. Following a public consultation, the Bill will establish the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as the lead regulator for access to cash and provide it with appropriate powers to seek to ensure reasonable provision of withdrawal and deposit facilities. In exercising its powers, the FCA must have regard to any local deficiencies in the provision of cash access that it has identified and considers to be significant. The government’s view is that this will allow for consideration of local circumstances in all parts of the UK, and will help ensure the most vulnerable are protected. Further details about the Bill can be found on the Parliament website.
This Bill builds on the government’s longstanding commitment to safeguard financial inclusion across the UK, including via the provision of basic bank accounts. Existing legislation requires the nine largest personal current account providers in the UK to provide basic bank accounts, so customers are equipped with a bank card and can access banking and payment services.
The FCA has a considerable evidence base on cash provision and use across the UK. Analysis that was published by the FCA in February 2020 found that 5.4 million people are still reliant on cash. Meanwhile, the FCA’s analysis shows that, as of the end of 2021, over 95% of the population are within two kilometres of a free-to-use cash access point, such as a free-to-use ATM, bank branch or Post Office branch.
Finally, Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available on the gov.uk website.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with banks and building societies to ensure the future availability of cash withdrawal and deposit facilities.
Answered by Baroness Penn
To ensure access to cash is protected, the government is currently taking legislation through Parliament as part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill. Following a public consultation, the Bill will establish the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as the lead regulator for access to cash and provide it with appropriate powers to seek to ensure reasonable provision of withdrawal and deposit facilities. In exercising its powers, the FCA must have regard to any local deficiencies in the provision of cash access that it has identified and considers to be significant. The government’s view is that this will allow for consideration of local circumstances in all parts of the UK, and will help ensure the most vulnerable are protected. Further details about the Bill can be found on the Parliament website.
This Bill builds on the government’s longstanding commitment to safeguard financial inclusion across the UK, including via the provision of basic bank accounts. Existing legislation requires the nine largest personal current account providers in the UK to provide basic bank accounts, so customers are equipped with a bank card and can access banking and payment services.
The FCA has a considerable evidence base on cash provision and use across the UK. Analysis that was published by the FCA in February 2020 found that 5.4 million people are still reliant on cash. Meanwhile, the FCA’s analysis shows that, as of the end of 2021, over 95% of the population are within two kilometres of a free-to-use cash access point, such as a free-to-use ATM, bank branch or Post Office branch.
Finally, Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available on the gov.uk website.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the access to cash withdrawal or deposit facilities for those in the two lowest socio-economic groups.
Answered by Baroness Penn
To ensure access to cash is protected, the government is currently taking legislation through Parliament as part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill. Following a public consultation, the Bill will establish the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as the lead regulator for access to cash and provide it with appropriate powers to seek to ensure reasonable provision of withdrawal and deposit facilities. In exercising its powers, the FCA must have regard to any local deficiencies in the provision of cash access that it has identified and considers to be significant. The government’s view is that this will allow for consideration of local circumstances in all parts of the UK, and will help ensure the most vulnerable are protected. Further details about the Bill can be found on the Parliament website.
This Bill builds on the government’s longstanding commitment to safeguard financial inclusion across the UK, including via the provision of basic bank accounts. Existing legislation requires the nine largest personal current account providers in the UK to provide basic bank accounts, so customers are equipped with a bank card and can access banking and payment services.
The FCA has a considerable evidence base on cash provision and use across the UK. Analysis that was published by the FCA in February 2020 found that 5.4 million people are still reliant on cash. Meanwhile, the FCA’s analysis shows that, as of the end of 2021, over 95% of the population are within two kilometres of a free-to-use cash access point, such as a free-to-use ATM, bank branch or Post Office branch.
Finally, Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available on the gov.uk website.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of adults in England and Wales who cannot acquire or deposit cash due to a lack of access to debit cards or the internet.
Answered by Baroness Penn
To ensure access to cash is protected, the government is currently taking legislation through Parliament as part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill. Following a public consultation, the Bill will establish the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as the lead regulator for access to cash and provide it with appropriate powers to seek to ensure reasonable provision of withdrawal and deposit facilities. In exercising its powers, the FCA must have regard to any local deficiencies in the provision of cash access that it has identified and considers to be significant. The government’s view is that this will allow for consideration of local circumstances in all parts of the UK, and will help ensure the most vulnerable are protected. Further details about the Bill can be found on the Parliament website.
This Bill builds on the government’s longstanding commitment to safeguard financial inclusion across the UK, including via the provision of basic bank accounts. Existing legislation requires the nine largest personal current account providers in the UK to provide basic bank accounts, so customers are equipped with a bank card and can access banking and payment services.
The FCA has a considerable evidence base on cash provision and use across the UK. Analysis that was published by the FCA in February 2020 found that 5.4 million people are still reliant on cash. Meanwhile, the FCA’s analysis shows that, as of the end of 2021, over 95% of the population are within two kilometres of a free-to-use cash access point, such as a free-to-use ATM, bank branch or Post Office branch.
Finally, Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available on the gov.uk website.