Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Morgan Excerpts

Tuesday 5th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Morgan (Portsmouth South) (Lab)]

22. HMRC has 2,000 fewer staff today than it did on the day of the referendum. Will the Minister explain the impact of HMRC cuts on the delayed timetable for the implementation of the UK’s future customs regime?

[Mel Stride]

I am confident that HMRC will be ready for the outcome of the EU negotiations, whatever that outcome is. We have taken on over 4,000 additional staff to ensure that we are ready, and we have of course invested £2 billion in additional funding since 2010 to ensure that HMRC can operate effectively.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Morgan Excerpts

Tuesday 29th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

Earlier in this session, I said that, if we want to have well-funded public services and a well-funded welfare support system, we must ensure that we have a sound economy. Part of having a sound economy is to get our deficit under control and our debt falling so that we are less vulnerable to shocks in the future. Our current levels of debt mean that this country is vulnerable in the event of an economic downturn. Such downturns come along from time to time, and we need to be able to manage them in order, precisely, to protect the poorest in our society.

[Stephen Morgan (Portsmouth South) (Lab)]

Does the Minister agree that the Government’s idea of turning high streets into residential streets or office spaces is not a solution to solving our high street crisis?

[Mr Hammond]

That is not what the Government propose or have proposed, but we must recognise that retail is changing and that the nature of our high streets has to change. The future high street will probably be smaller than the high streets of today. It makes sense to use the land that is released around our high streets to develop residential accommodation, addressing the housing challenges that we face, but also bringing footfall back into our high streets and town centre areas to give them vibrancy and a decent chance for the future.

HMRC Estate Transformation

Stephen Morgan Excerpts

Tuesday 29th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Mel Stride]

There has already been an equality impact assessment. It is in the public domain, but I would be very happy to share it with the hon. Member.

[Stephen Morgan (Portsmouth South) (Lab)]

Seventy-nine per cent. of staff surveyed said that the plans undermine their ability to provide tax collection. Are HMRC staff wrong?

[Mel Stride]

What is wrong is the suggestion that we are not good at collecting tax. We are world class at collecting tax. We have a tax gap of just 5.7%. If we had the same tax gap that we had under the Labour party, the missing revenue would be enough to employ every policeman and woman in England and Wales. The Conservative way works; the Labour way squanders resources.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Morgan Excerpts

Tuesday 6th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Philip Hammond]

I am sure that both BEIS and the Department for Work and Pensions are already aware of that very large job loss, and I will ensure that my colleagues are looking at it.

[Stephen Morgan (Portsmouth South) (Lab)]

What role, if any, have the readiness for Brexit and resource levels of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs played in influencing the Prime Minister to consider extending the customs transition period?

[Mel Stride]

HMRC has a central role in ensuring that we are ready for Brexit, specifically in the unlikely event of a no-deal day one scenario. That has included the recruitment of 2,300 additional staff, and we will have an additional 5,000 staff by the end of the year. We are ready, and we will be ready, for wherever this deal lands.

Public Sector Pay

Stephen Morgan Excerpts

Tuesday 24th July 2018 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Morgan (Portsmouth South) (Lab)]

The Chief Secretary says that our armed forces will receive a 0.9% one-off payment, but there is no clear timeframe. Will she tell us exactly when armed forces personnel will receive that payment?

[Elizabeth Truss]

Personnel will receive that payment alongside their 2% pay rise this year. Many armed forces personnel will also receive pay increments—we saw an average of 1.3% last year—on top of the bonus and the pay rise.