Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to enable the increased use of imperial units following the UK’s departure from the EU; whether they are reviewing the present metric regulations; and, if so, what plans they have to consult The British Weights and Measures Association as a result of this review.

Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Government is reviewing the current law on the use of metric and imperial units of measurement. The purpose of the review is to identify how we can give more choice to businesses and consumers over the units of measurement they use, while ensuring that measurement information remains accurate.

As part of this review, we will carry out an early-stage consultation to gather views and to ensure that we have the best evidence available to make any changes. We would encourage the British Weights and Measures Association to share their views as part of that process.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to a US appeals court overturning the conviction on 28 January of two Deutsche Bank traders accused of manipulating Libor rates, what plans, if any, they have to review the processes around investigating such offences in the UK.

Answered by Lord Stewart of Dirleton

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is a specialist prosecuting authority tackling the top level of serious or complex fraud, bribery, and corruption.

In 2012, the SFO commenced investigations into Libor manipulation which resulted in nine individuals – all holding significant positions in their respective banks – either pleading guilty or found guilty by a jury.

Many of these convictions have been reviewed by the Court of Appeal and none of them have been overturned.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Stewart of Dirleton on 6 April (HL7312), what assessment they have made of the judgment of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in United States V. DB Group Services (UK) Limited (and Deutsche Bank AG) which found that the rigging of Libor interest rates was not against the rules.

Answered by Lord Stewart of Dirleton

There has been no further assessment made on the judgment of the US Court of Appeal in these cases.

Question

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of car hire companies refusing to lease vehicles to individuals based solely on their age; and what steps they will take to ensure that older drivers with full licences and insurance are not discriminated against.

Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)

Such actions would be concerning and potentially unlawful. The Equality Act 2010 provides that it is unlawful age discrimination for a service provider such as a car hire company to refuse, on age grounds, to lease a vehicle to an otherwise qualified person, unless the company can objectively justify its decision.

Where a company cannot, in those circumstances, show that their leasing policy is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim, the affected person can bring a case to the County Court, or Sheriff’s Court in Scotland. The court can then determine whether the “objective justification test” has been satisfied, and may award costs and compensation where the individual wins their case. A range of guidance is available to service providers on their obligations and to service users on their rights, most notably on the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s website, but also through the Equality and Advisory and Support Service (EASS). The EASS can be contacted via its website - http://www.equalityadvisoryservice.com, or it can be contacted by telephone on 0808 800 0082 (or by text phone on 0808 800 0084).

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how much tax is forgone annually by HM Treasury as a result of the tax exemptions for charities’ (1) donations, (2) investment income, and (3) gains on capital investments.

Answered by Baroness Penn

Tax relief is available on donations to charity by individuals and organisations, and to charities for their activities, including investment income.

Estimates for tax reliefs on charitable donations by individuals are published in “UK charity tax relief statistics”. The table below is an extract from the latest edition, showing these estimates for the previous 5 tax years.

Extract from Table 1 and 2: Estimates for UK charities tax reliefs. Updated November 2021

Restricted to those reliefs for which accurate figures can be estimated

Information about tax relief on charities’ investment income, and on charitable donations by organisations is not readily available.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the likely impact of HM Revenue’s ‘Making Tax Digital’ compulsory VAT scheme on the number of SME business that have (1) ceased trading, or (2) reduced turnover to below the VAT threshold.

Answered by Baroness Penn

There is no evidence to suggest that businesses have either ceased trading or reduced their turnover to below the VAT threshold due to Making Tax Digital (MTD) for VAT.

Following the successful introduction of MTD for VAT-registered businesses with taxable turnover above the VAT threshold in April 2019, the Government has extended MTD for VAT to all other VAT-registered businesses from April 2022.

Independent research shows that businesses using MTD-compliant software for their VAT obligations are realising efficiency benefits and the resulting reduction in errors is leading to additional tax revenue.

Question

To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what assessment he has made of the risk of damage to the Victoria Tower from (1) the excavations, and (2) the vibrations from heavy piling work, required for the development of the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre at Victoria Tower Gardens.

Answered by Lord Touhig

The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chair of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf.

The full assessment of risks to the Parliamentary Estate, including the Victoria Tower, from the construction of the Holocaust Memorial can only be made once detailed design proposals are available to review.

Different construction and excavation plans will have different impacts and risks. We plan to install vibration monitors when and where appropriate.

It is expected that the Holocaust Memorial project team will engage with the House as a key stakeholder throughout the detailed design stage.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers from Lord Greenhalgh on 23 February (HL6158 and HL 6159), what assessment they have made of the risk of damage to the Victoria Tower from (1) the excavations, and  (2) the vibrations from heavy piling work, required for the development of the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre at Victoria Tower Gardens.

Answered by Lord Greenhalgh

Excavations and piling work for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre will be carefully managed and monitored to ensure minimal impact on the surroundings. There is no expectation that these works will impact on Victoria Tower.

Found: to the Clerk of the Parliaments I gather from my recent conversations with my noble friend the Lord Vinson

Found: Kalms, Baroness Lister of Burtersett, Baroness Massey of Darwen, Baroness O’Loan, Lord Tebbit and Lord Vinson