Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to revise the current duty collection arrangements on post duty point dilution tax avoidance.
Answered by Simon Clarke
At Budget 2018, the government announced its plans to prohibit the practice of post duty point dilution (PDPD) from April 2020. From that date, wine and made-wine producers will not be able to use PDPD to reduce the excise duty they must pay. Legislation to be included within Finance Bill 2019-20 will give HM Revenue & Customs new sanctions that may be applied to any producer that continues to use PDPD after that date.
There are no plans to revise the existing arrangements for duty collection.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to reduce the rate of duty on spirits distilled by smaller distilleries in the UK.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The government has no current plans to introduce a small spirits relief. However, all taxes are kept under review and the impact of such a change is considered at each fiscal event; including its effect on the industry and wider economy.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to raise the pension tax allowance above the current rate of 25 per cent.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government wishes to encourage pension saving, to help ensure that people have an income, or funds on which they can draw, throughout retirement. This is why, for the majority of savers, pension contributions are tax-free. Furthermore, investment growth of assets in a pension scheme is not subject to tax. Up to 25% of the pension pot can be taken tax-free. After this, payments of pensions are subject to income tax at an individual’s marginal rate, to reflect the fact that these are a form of deferred income and have not been previously taxed.
In addition, the Government is committed to keeping taxes low to ensure people keep more of what they earn.
In April of this year, the Government met its commitment to raise the personal tax-free allowance to £12,500, one year early. This means the Government has now raised the personal allowance by over 90% in less than a decade. In 2019-20, over 32 million individuals will see their income tax bill reduced and 1.74 million people on the lowest incomes will have been taken out of income tax altogether since 2015-16. A typical basic rate taxpayer will pay £1,205 less income tax compared to 2010-11.
The Government keeps all aspects of the tax system under review and any decisions on future changes will be taken as part of the annual Budget process in the context of the wider public finances.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to increase funding to the Charity Commission in order to investigate complaints against charities and build public trust in the charitable sector.
Answered by Simon Clarke
In January 2018 the Charity Commission was allocated an additional £5m per year from the Government to help it respond to significant increases in demand on its core regulatory functions. Any future funding will be decided as part of the upcoming Spending Round.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to undertake a review of the level of taxation on (a) beer and (b) pubs.
Answered by Simon Clarke
All taxes are kept under review and the impact of a change to beer duty or other taxes is considered at each fiscal event, including their effect on pubs and the wider economy.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2018 to Question 190861 on Religious Buildings: VAT, whether his Department has plans to remove VAT on the repair and maintenance of places of worship after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The UK will leave the EU at the end of March next year. The UK and EU negotiating teams have already reached agreement on the terms of an implementation period that will start on 30 March 2019 and last until 31 December 2020. During the implementation period, the UK will no longer be a Member State of the European Union, but market access will continue on current terms. We therefore will not remove VAT on repair and maintenance of places of worship during the implementation period.Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with the Governor of the Bank of England on the Venezuelan Government's request to withdraw their deposited gold from its reserves.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Chancellor has not had a discussion with the Governor regarding the Venezuelan government’s request to withdraw gold deposits from the Bank of England.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to remove VAT from services and items included for the repair and maintenance of (a) churches and (b) other religious buildings.
Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
Under the current EU rules, the government cannot remove VAT on the repair and maintenance of places of worship.
The government recognises the importance of places of worship in our communities and provides funding to cover the cost of repairs and maintenance of listed places of worship through The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, managed by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to ensure that (a) churches and (b) other places of worship continue to have adequate insurance for metal and stone theft after making a claim.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government believes that it is important that everyone has access to suitable insurance products at the right price.
As a rule, insurers use their claims experience and other industry-wide statistics to set the terms and price at which they will offer insurance cover. Insurers make a risk assessment based on the likelihood a claim being made and the potential cost of that claim.
To assist with building costs, the Government made up to £42 million per annum available for the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme which provides grants towards the VAT paid on repairs, maintenance and alterations to listed buildings that are used principally as places of worship. Since its inception in 2001, the scheme has made 48,196 individual grants to 17,324 places of worship at a total cost of over £223m. The scheme applies to all faiths and denominations and is delivered UK wide.
Asked by: Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue has been collected by HM Revenue and Customs every year since 2010 from (a) underpayment and (b) previously undeclared income.
Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
Since April 2010, HMRC’s Debt Management group has collected £278.3 billion in underpaid tax, and HMRC’s compliance activities into all types of non-compliance have generated almost £160 billion of additional compliance yield.