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Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Taxation
Friday 25th June 2021

Asked by: Darren Henry (Conservative - Broxtowe)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has plans to reconsider the taxation of historic cars so that the date the law is calculated from is the registration date on the V5 document rather than the date the car was manufactured.

Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade

In recognition of the important role that historic vehicles play in the country’s heritage, the Government announced at Budget 2014 that it would introduce a rolling 40-year Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) exemption. This means that from 1 April each year, vehicles constructed 40 years before the 1 January of that year are automatically exempt from paying VED.

The Government uses the construction date of the vehicle as the main eligibility criteria for this VED exemption as it is most suited for determining the age of the vehicle. However, where a vehicle’s construction date is not provided on the vehicle’s record, the date of first registration is used to determine the vehicle’s eligibility for the exemption. There are no current plans to amend the basis of this VED exemption from vehicle construction date to vehicle registration date, but as with all taxes, VED is kept under review.


Written Question
Hospitality Industry: Tax Allowances
Monday 1st March 2021

Asked by: Darren Henry (Conservative - Broxtowe)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending (a) business rates relief and (b) the temporary VAT reduction for businesses in the hospitality industry; and what his Department's long-term strategy is on support for people who work in that sector.

Answered by Jesse Norman

This year, due to the direct adverse effects of COVID-19, the Government has provided an unprecedented business rates holiday for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties worth over £10 billion. The Government has also frozen the business rates multiplier for all businesses for 2021-22.

The temporary VAT reduced rate came into effect on 15 July 2020 and was initially scheduled to end on 12 January 2021. The Government extended the reduced rate of VAT (5 per cent) until 31 March 2021.

The Budget will set out the next phase of the Government’s plans to tackle the virus, protect jobs and support business.


Written Question
Beer: Excise Duties
Wednesday 24th February 2021

Asked by: Darren Henry (Conservative - Broxtowe)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of reducing beer duty to help support pubs and breweries who face financial hardship as a result of covid-19 lockdown restrictions; and what further support he plans to make available to the hospitality industry to ensure its future viability.

Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade

The Government understands that this is a very challenging time for pubs and breweries. For that reason, the Government froze beer duty at the 2020 Budget. At the upcoming budget, the Government will outline the next stages of its plan to support businesses and families across the UK.


Written Question
Business: Coronavirus
Monday 7th December 2020

Asked by: Darren Henry (Conservative - Broxtowe)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support is available for businesses whose profits have been adversely affected by lower footfall as a result of the covid-19 lockdown restrictions who are ineligible for Government support since they are deemed to be essential businesses.

Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade

We have a substantial support package available for businesses regardless of whether they are open or closed. The Chancellor recently announced that the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) has been extended until the end of March 2021. This provides businesses with a grant to cover 80% of the wages of their employees. We have added additional flexibility so it can be used to cover reduced hours as well as for businesses that are closed. To date CJRS has support 9.6 million jobs at the cost of roughly £41.9bn

Likewise, for businesses that remain open but are severely affected by restrictions, the Local Restrictions Support Grant (open) provides up to £2,100 of support per month. They can also access one-off funding through the Additional Restrictions Grant, worth £1.1bn nationally and is distributed by local authorities.

In addition to this support, businesses have also benefited from the access to finance schemes, including the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS). Under the BBLS, the government provides lenders with a 100% guarantee to enable them to provide loans between £2,000 and £50,000 to the smallest businesses across the UK with a simple, streamlined application process.

Moreover, all eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will pay no business rates in England for 12 months from 1 April 2020. Businesses will also benefit from the reduced rate of VAT for tourist attractions and goods & services supplied by the hospitality sector.


Written Question
Self-employed: Coronavirus
Tuesday 1st December 2020

Asked by: Darren Henry (Conservative - Broxtowe)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) newly and (b) other self-employed people who have been affected by the covid-19 outbreak and who are ineligible for the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The design of the SEISS, including the eligibility requirements that an individual’s trading profits must be no more than £50,000 and at least equal to their non-trading income, means it is targeted at those who most need it, and who are most reliant on their self-employment income.

The Government acknowledges that it has not been possible to support everyone as they might want. The practical issues that prevented the Government from being able to include the newly self-employed in 2019-20 in the original Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), namely that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will not have access to their self-assessment returns in order to verify their eligibility, still remain. The latest year for which HMRC have tax returns for all self-employed individuals is 2018/19. 2019/20 returns are not due until the end of January 2021.

Those ineligible for the SEISS may still be eligible for other elements of the support available. The Universal Credit standard allowance has been temporarily increased for 2020-21 and the Minimum Income Floor relaxed for the duration of the crisis, so that where self-employed claimants' earnings have fallen significantly, their Universal Credit award will have increased to reflect their lower earnings. In addition to this, they may also have access to other elements of the package, including Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support, mortgage holidays, self-isolation support payments and other business support grants.


Written Question
Sole Traders: Coronavirus
Thursday 26th November 2020

Asked by: Darren Henry (Conservative - Broxtowe)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what grant support is available to one-person limited companies trading from the director's home that are affected by covid-19 restrictions.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Winter Economy Plan set out a package of targeted measures in response to the current economic context that will enable businesses to protect jobs and manage their finances in the face of reduced or uncertain demand. These include extending the temporary VAT reduced rate for hospitality and tourism, extending the application window of the access to finance schemes, and providing further support for employees and the self-employed.

Following the extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), company directors who pay themselves a salary through a PAYE scheme are able to apply for CJRS support, subject to meeting the eligibility criteria of the scheme. In addition, company directors may be eligible for other elements of the package of financial support available. This includes Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support, mortgage holidays, increased levels of Universal Credit, self-isolation support payments and other business support grants.