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Written Question
Alcoholic Drinks: Excise Duties
Wednesday 2nd November 2022

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 17 October regarding the changes to alcohol duty (HC Deb col 396), what steps they are taking to protect the alcohol industry given the increased cost of living.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

On 17 October, the Chancellor announced a reversal of the freeze of alcohol duty rates from 1 February 2023, initially announced in the Growth Plan on 23 September.

The Government understands that many businesses are worried about the rising cost of living, including businesses within the alcohol industry. The alcohol duty uprating decision and interactions with the wider reforms to alcohol duties will be considered in due course.


Written Question
Fraud
Tuesday 8th February 2022

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to tackle economic crime, and (2) to prevent fraudulent companies from accessing public funds.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

The Government has set out a comprehensive programme for addressing economic crime with the private sector through the jointly published Economic Crime Plan.

The Government is making measurable progress in delivering the Economic Crime Plan and is on course to deliver 49 of the 52 actions it sets out. The Government published a Statement of Progress in May 2021 updating the public and stakeholders on the Plan’s implementation.

The steps taken to prevent fraudulent companies accessing public funds depend on the nature of the public funding. Common due diligence approaches include Spotlight, the government’s online automated due-diligence tool, fraud prevention data analytics, and Credit Reference Agency due diligence services.


Written Question
Energy: Older People
Monday 8th November 2021

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the elderly can afford to heat their homes during this winter; and what plans they have to cut VAT on energy bills for six months.

Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton

In recognition of the fact that families should not have to bear all the VAT costs they incur to meet their energy needs, the Government already maintains a reduced rate of 5 per cent VAT on the supply of domestic energy, at a cost of £5 billion per year.

Although the Government keeps all taxes under review, going further would impose additional pressure on the public finances, to which VAT makes a significant contribution. VAT raised around £130 billion in the year 2019/20, and helps to fund key spending priorities, including on health, education, and defence.

Additional support is provided through the Winter Fuel Payment, which is designed to ensure that households where older people are living can be heated and kept warm during winter months.


Written Question
Duty Free Allowances
Monday 19th July 2021

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on the tourism industry of abolishing the VAT Retail Export Scheme.

Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton

On 11 September 2020, the Government announced the VAT and excise duty treatment of goods purchased by individuals for personal use and carried in their luggage arriving from or going overseas (passengers) following the transition period. The following rules were implemented on 1 January 2021:

- Passengers travelling from Great Britain to any destination outside the United Kingdom (UK) can purchase duty-free excise goods once they have passed security controls at ports, airports, and international rail stations.

- Personal allowances apply to passengers entering Great Britain from any destination outside of the UK, with alcohol allowances significantly increased.

- The VAT Retail Export Scheme (RES) in Great Britain has not been extended to EU residents and has been withdrawn for all passengers.

- The concessionary treatment on tax-free sales for non-excise goods has been removed across the UK.

The Government published a consultation which ran from 11 March to 20 May 2020. During this time the Government held a number of virtual meetings with industry stakeholders to hear their views and received 73 responses to the consultation. The Government has also met and discussed these changes with many stakeholders following the announcement of these policies.

The detailed rationale for these changes was provided in the written ministerial statement and the published summary of responses to the consultation. A detailed technical note has also been made available to stakeholders.

On 25 November 2020 the independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) set out their assessment of the fiscal impact of the withdrawal of the VAT RES.

Factoring in a higher-than-usual elasticity of 1.9 to account for spending on luxury goods, the OBR estimate that the withdrawal of the VAT RES will result in a significant direct Exchequer saving of around £400 million per year, once passenger numbers recover from the impacts of Covid-19. Based on the 1.2 million users of the scheme who received a refund in 2019, this includes an assumption that approximately 20,000 – 30,000 fewer tourists visit Great Britain a year. That is 0.07% of the 40 million visitors to the UK in 2019.

The OBR also looked at this package in the round when assessing the indirect impact on the economy – including the effects of extending duty-free sales – alongside the substantial support provided to the economy and retail industry.


Written Question
Ports: Customs Officers
Monday 8th February 2021

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to reports of the impact of the UK’s departure from the EU on ports, how many customs officers are employed at each such port in the UK; how many vacancies there are for such posts; what assessment they have made of the number of such officers required to address such an impact; and what steps they are taking to meet any shortfall in the number of customs officers required.

Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton

Border Force are responsible for customs controls at the UK border, and for the resources necessary to meet those responsibilities. HMRC are responsible for customs matters inland, and for overall revenue and customs policy. Border Force undertook a large scale recruitment and training exercise in order to be able to respond flexibly to requirements at the border after transition. The latest published staffing and finance figures for Border Force can be found in the Home Office Annual Report for 2019-2020.

The Government is monitoring freight flow across UK ports through the Border Operations Centre in the Cabinet Office and freight levels have been increasing over recent weeks.


Written Question
Customs: Recruitment
Monday 8th February 2021

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to reports that their target of employing the additional customs agents required for the UK’s departure from the EU has not been met, what plans they have to increase the level of such agents.

Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton

The Government does not have a target for numbers of customs agents. Readiness in the sector relates to the capacity to make declarations, rather than numbers of staff employed. This is because the sector is varied and made up of a number of different business models including specific customs brokers, freight forwarders and fast parcel operators; all of which will require different numbers of staff to complete declarations and to provide their services.

Many in the sector have innovated and brought in significant IT solutions to automate processes which have reduced the numbers of staff they require.

The Government has helped them to do this by making over £80 million of support available, including flexible grants that can be used for IT and training as well as recruitment, depending on the needs of the business. There is also support for intermediaries available through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS).

The sector has scaled up significantly, and the Government continues to monitor progress closely and engage with the sector to understand the support it needs.


Written Question
Coronavirus: Ethnic Groups
Wednesday 28th October 2020

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address any racial inequalities which have occurred as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Answered by Baroness Berridge

The Government has implemented significant measures to reduce the spread of the virus in all communities, especially for people who may be at higher risk. This includes ensuring that those in high-contact professions get targeted testing and taking appropriate and proportionate steps to risk assess NHS ethnic minority staff.

The Minister for Equalities, Kemi Badenoch MP, is also working with the Race Disparity Unit and the Department for Health and Social Care to take forward work on the findings of the Public Health England Report “COVID-19: review of disparities in risks and outcomes”. This includes reviewing the effectiveness and impact of current actions being undertaken by government departments and their agencies to directly lessen disparities in infection and death rates of COVID-19.


Written Question
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
Tuesday 29th September 2020

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the release of ONS figures which found a decline of 695,000 employees on payrolls since March, what plans they have to extend the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton

Building on the action taken in the face of the immediate threat posed by the virus, the second phase of the Government’s response to the pandemic began earlier this year with the targeted Plan for Jobs. This places emphasis on job creation, as well as protection through the Job Retention Bonus, which specifically encourages firms to keep on workers they previously furloughed. It also supports jobseekers with direct help to find work and to gain the skills they need to gain employment.

Now that the economy is opening up, the Government has introduced a Winter Economy Plan including the new Job Support Scheme, which targets support to those businesses that need it most: focusing on those that are being affected by COVID-19 and who can support their employees doing some work, but that need more time for demand to recover.


Written Question
Credit Cards: Coronavirus
Tuesday 23rd June 2020

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to provide support to people who have fallen behind on their credit card and bill payments as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton

The Government recognises that the outbreak of COVID-19 may lead to consumers facing financial difficulty and uncertainty.

The major banks and building societies have pledged to provide relief to customers impacted by COVID-19, including deferring mortgage and other loan repayments, waiving fees on savings accounts, and increasing overdraft or credit card limits.

On 9 April the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) also announced a series of measures intended to provide emergency support to consumers who are facing temporary cash flow problems as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. These measures came into force on Tuesday 14 April.

These measures include, allowing consumers either a 3-month payment holiday or to make nominal payments towards credit cards, store cards, catalogue credit and certain personal loan agreements. It is important to note that lenders can continue to charge interest during this 3-month period. Customers should contact their lender if they are experiencing short-term cash flow problems and would benefit from these measures.

In their guidance for firms, the FCA set out their expectation that the payment deferrals described here should not worsen the arrears status of a consumer’s credit file during the payment deferral period.

The Chancellor has also announced a wide package of economic support measures including the Self-employment Income Support Scheme and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, to support businesses and consumers during this pandemic.


Written Question
Economic Situation: Coronavirus
Tuesday 23rd June 2020

Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic impact the restrictions in place to address the COVID-19 pandemic has had on university cities and towns; and what financial assistance, if any, they intend to provide.

Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton

We recognise that every region and community will be feeling the impacts of this crisis and we are working to monitor the impact of Covid-19 on local communities across the United Kingdom.

In May, we announced measures to support students and universities. These included bringing forward £100m of research funding for vital research, and an estimated £2.6bn worth of tuition fee payments for providers to help manage cash flow.

The Government has also confirmed that providers are eligible to apply for its support packages, including business loan support schemes, which the Office for Students (OfS) the regulator in England, estimates could be worth at least £700m to the sector, depending on eligibility and take up.

We are working closely with local areas to make sure that individuals and businesses in all regions are directed to the right support during this difficult period.