Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of revoking the regulations setting a maximum limit on public sector exit payments in (a) 2020-21 and (b) 2021-22; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
We do not have an estimate of the costs which may be incurred for future years for exit payments, as they are determined by the number and type of exits which take place in the year.
From 2018/19 data reported in Whole of Government Accounts, the combined total cost of exit payments over £100,000 in 2018/19 was £200million. The Regulations set a maximum limit of £95,000 for in scope exit payments. We expected most exit payments that previously would have been above £100,000 to decrease in line with the cap. Therefore, overall savings would be less than the total cost of exits. Data for 2019/20 is not currently available.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals for limiting public sector exit payments.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government is working at pace to deliver a new controls procedure for Special Severance exit payments by June 2021. We remain committed to bringing forward new policy measures to address the wide-ranging arrangements that result in six-figure pay-outs across the public sector.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it the policy of the Government to raise the maximum purchase price of a house outside London which is eligible for purchase by people using the Help to Buy ISA.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Help to Buy: ISA scheme aims to help those struggling to save enough to get onto the housing ladder. The property price cap allows the Government to target support at the first-time buyers who need it the most. The scheme includes a higher property value cap of £450,000 for properties in London compared to £250,000 anywhere else in the UK.
The latest statistics show that since the scheme was launched in 2015 359,250 property completions, including more than 25,000 completions in London, have been supported through the scheme with a mean property value of £174,281 compared to an average first-time buyer house price of £204,964 and a national average house price of £244,513. The Government keeps all aspects of savings policy under review.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it the policy of the Government to extend exemption from income tax for the year 2020-21 to people who work full time overseas but have remained in the UK for a longer period than intended in the tax year as a result of the closure of international borders and restrictions on international travel.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government believes the UK’s current residency rules broadly deliver outcomes for taxpayers that are fair and reasonable. It is a fundamental premise of the tax system that an individual who spends much of the tax year in the country will be treated as resident for tax purposes.
HMRC have published guidance which explains that in some circumstances, time spent in the UK due to Covid restrictions will not be counted as days spent in the UK for the purpose of the Statutory Residence Test under the ‘exceptional circumstances’ rule. However, the exceptional circumstances test excludes only up to 60 days of presence and so will not preserve non-resident status for an individual who is here for most of the year.
The Government does recognise that the current pandemic has caused immense difficulties for many people and this is why it has provided a very substantial economic support package.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of raising the maximum measurements for VAT zero rated clothing so that nine out of ten thirteen year olds come within the maximum measurements.
Answered by Jesse Norman
No estimate is available. I refer the Honourable Member to the answer given on 22 March 2021 to UIN 169785 for further information on this subject.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of categorising all school uniform as zero rated for VAT: and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Estimates of the number of children with the measurements requested are not available.
The UK is one of only two countries within the OECD to maintain a zero rate for children’s clothing, which costs £2 billion per year. Expanding this to include all school uniforms would come at a cost to the Exchequer, and would require reductions in spending or tax rises elsewhere.
The Government has no plans to review the VAT treatment of children’s clothing.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of children aged (a) 13, (b) 12, (c) 11 and (d) 10 whose measurements for clothing exceed the maximum to qualify for that clothing to be zero rated for VAT; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Estimates of the number of children with the measurements requested are not available.
The UK is one of only two countries within the OECD to maintain a zero rate for children’s clothing, which costs £2 billion per year. Expanding this to include all school uniforms would come at a cost to the Exchequer, and would require reductions in spending or tax rises elsewhere.
The Government has no plans to review the VAT treatment of children’s clothing.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason the temporary VAT exemption on personal protective equipment has not been extended beyond 31 October 2020; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The temporary relief was designed to relieve the burden of VAT on the price of purchasing Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) used for protection from coronavirus by front line workers. Since then, the Department of Health and Social Care has stabilised the UK PPE supply chain and by the end of November, a four month stockpile of all COVID-critical PPE will be in place, with a tremendous contribution from UK manufacturers.
The temporary zero-rate of VAT on PPE is therefore no longer required and ended on 31 October 2020 as planned.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will (a) instruct the Valuation Office Agency to complete its work on the allocation of rateable values to the individual business premises at Aerodrome Studios, Airfield Way, Christchurch and (b) compensate businesses affected by the original decision not to allow the premises to be split for rating purposes following the reversal of that decision on appeal.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has a statutory duty to maintain the Rating List by assessing the rateable value (RV) of all non-domestic properties in line with the appropriate legislation. The VOA carries out its valuations independently of ministers and is currently meeting its statutory deadlines in relation to its Check, Challenge, Appeal service.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when definitive advice will be available for removal companies on the customs documentation they will need from their customers in order to facilitate the transfer of their goods to destinations in the EU which are their new country of domicile; and whether there will be a central point to which that customs paperwork should be submitted.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The management of EU import and export procedures is the responsibility of the customs authorities of the Member States. It is important that businesses and individuals confirm the processes at their port of arrival and any conditions or procedures that may apply, such as the time limit goods may remain in the EU without the payment of duty. More information can be found online at https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/home_en.
From 1 January 2021 export declarations and exit Safety and Security declarations will also be required for all goods moving from the UK to the EU. More information on export declarations can be found online at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/making-a-full-export-declaration.