Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking with (a) scientists, (b) industry and (c) civil society to phase out testing on animals.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Labour Manifesto includes a commitment to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”. Work to support this transition must be science-led and in lock step with partners and the government has been consulting scientists, industry and civil society as this process unfolds.
The government will publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year and has engaged with scientists, industry and civil society to draft this strategy.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the potential financial savings to the Exchequer of (a) withdrawing the postponed VAT accounting process and (b) bringing forward payment of VAT on imports using the same facilities as apply to customs duties.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Postponed VAT accounting is an established and valued part of the UK’s VAT regime, which provides significant simplification and cashflow benefits to UK businesses who import goods from overseas. Unlike customs duty, VAT paid upon importation of goods is typically able to be reclaimed where the goods are sold on or used in the course of business. Postponed VAT accounting allows businesses to account for and reclaim the VAT on the same VAT return, thereby producing a nil result, rather than paying VAT on import and reclaiming it on a future VAT return. Postponed VAT accounting does not change the overall VAT liability on any imported goods.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of not increasing the personal allowance on levels of disposable income in Wales.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to keeping taxes for working people as low as possible while ensuring fiscal responsibility. At our first Budget, we decided not to extend the freeze on personal tax thresholds which was implemented by the previous Government.
The OBR’s forecast does not decompose policy impacts on Real Household Disposable Income (RHDI) per capita by individual policies or by country. Accounting for the total impact of Budget measures on a UK basis, the OBR forecast RHDI per capita to rise at an annual average rate of 0.5% per year over the parliament.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions her Department has had with the Welsh Government on the potential impact of the situation in Kashmir on (a) policing and (b) community relations in Wales.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has been sharing up to date information with Welsh partners on emerging risks and issues in relation to the terrorist attack in Pahalgam in India-administered Kashmir and will continue to work with those partners to monitor any local reactions and tensions.
Whilst community cohesion is a devolved area, officials from the Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government also continue to support the Devolved Governments in best practice for monitoring and alleviating any community tensions.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will hold discussions with (a) the UN Security Council and (b) his Moroccan counterpart on ensuring access to the occupied territory of Western Sahara by (a) the media and (b) humanitarian NGOs.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has supported language in relevant UN Security Council Resolutions that encourages the parties to continue their efforts to enhance the promotion and protection of human rights in Western Sahara, including the freedoms of expression and association. Officials, including up to ambassador level, also engage on these issues with the Moroccan Government and authorities. The UK continues to regularly meet and consult regional and international partners to discuss the issue of Western Sahara, including those from the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), the UN, civil society, and the broader international community.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 April to Question 42840 on Western Sahara: Human Rights, what discussions he has had with the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary General on Western Sahara on the adequacy of the number investigations undertaken by the Moroccan National Human Rights Council following allegations of human rights abuses in Western Sahara since 2015.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to the promotion and protection of human rights worldwide, including in Morocco and Western Sahara, and consistently urges all states to uphold international law and international human rights standards, avoiding any action that may endanger human life. The UK engages regularly with Staffan de Mistura, Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary General for Western Sahara, most recently at senior official level on 1 April. The Minister for Africa last met with him in September 2024.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many times HMRC's Statutory Payment Consultation Group convened in each of the past 5 years.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Statutory Payments Consultation Group convened as follows:
2020 – once
2021 – once
2022 – once
2023 – not held
2024 - once
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero on release of the investment reserve of the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme to uplift pensions.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Chancellor meets regularly with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero to discuss a range of issues.
The Government is considering proposals put forward by the BCSSS Trustees and needs to understand their impacts for both scheme members and the Government, in the same way as we are doing for the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme. The Government and BCSSS Trustees are working together to jointly commission analysis so that we can gain that understanding and work towards reaching agreement on a way forward.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of allocating a portion of the financial penalties collected by the Financial Conduct Authority to fund financial redress to people affected by the collapse of Football Index and BetIndex Limited.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recognises the significant impact the collapse of BetIndex Ltd had on former customers.
Revenue from FCA fines is used to benefit the taxpaying public. First, the FCA deducts the costs of enforcement from its fine income. Any money left over is passed to the Treasury in accordance with the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. The Treasury must surrender it to the Consolidated Fund and is then part of the Government’s total revenues, used to pay for all Government spending on public services like hospitals, hospices, and other crucial services. The Government has no plans to change this approach.
The previous Government concluded that it would not be appropriate for the Government to use public funds to provide compensation for those who had lost money through the collapse of Football Index and BetIndex. Whilst the Government strongly sympathises with all who were impacted, we do not think this decision should be reopened.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent estimate she has made of the (a) backlog of cases and (b) average time taken by the Valuation Office Agency’s to process applications to transfer short-term rental properties between business rates and council tax; and what steps she is taking to help improve performance.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has announced that the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) will be integrated into HMRC by April 2026. Moving the VOA’s functions into HMRC will increase oversight and accountability to Ministers over delivery of their priorities to modernise the tax system and improve the experience of taxpayers and businesses.
On average, the VOA is clearing cases relating to self-catering properties in England and Wales within four months.
Currently, the VOA is working as quickly as possible to clear any outstanding cases, focusing on the oldest cases first, and those where customers are facing financial hardship.
More widely, it is replacing IT systems with modern cloud-based platforms that will deliver significant efficiencies across its work. It is also upskilling its workforce so they can handle multiple types of cases, and improving its digital services to make it easier for customers to self-serve.