Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the new carbon capture clusters on the economy in (a) Teesside and (b) Merseyside.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The first clusters were selected after an assessment of five criteria, including economic benefits. We expect these two clusters to support 4,000 jobs in the short term and 50,000 jobs across the supply chain as the sector matures in the 2030s, Carbon Capture Usage and Storage (CCUS) could add up to £5 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) to the economy by 2050. The £21.7 billion in funding announced in October 2024 will crowd in private sector investment and unlock a further pipeline of billions of pounds. Industry partners are estimated to have invested £1 billion in already.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she had discussions with industry stakeholders at the International Investment Summit on investment in the UK’s strategic energy infrastructure.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Chancellor met with a range of domestic and international investors with current and prospective investments in the UK’s strategic energy infrastructure at the International Investment Summit.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 October 2024 to Question 10798 on African Swine Fever, what uncertainty is there around the human mediated pathways for African swine fever.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra and its agencies regularly review the spread of ASF when new outbreaks occur internationally and publishes risk assessments on GOV.UK at: African swine fever in pigs and wild boars in Europe - GOV.UK.
Since the latest risk assessment of July 2024, the risk of ASF entering Great Britain through a human-mediated pathway is considered to be high, though there is considerable uncertainty around this, particularly around the illegal movement of pig products from regions of the EU affected by ASF. Defra and its agencies keep this under regular review and will reassess the risk level and corresponding controls as further information becomes available.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the time frame in which bereavement support can be claimed.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Bereavement Support Payment (BSP) helps people with short-term bereavement costs, by way of a lump sum followed by up to 18 monthly instalments. The lump sum has a 12 -month, and each instalment a 3- month, time limit for claiming. A person would need to claim BSP 21 months late to forfeit the entire benefit. So, for example, if someone was 6 months late in claiming BSP they would still get the lump sum and over a years’ worth of monthly payments.
The 3-month time limit for the monthly payments is consistent with most social security benefits. This rule is absolute, does not allow for discretionary backdating and is set out in legislation.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the potential cost to the public purse is of the Government’s international climate finance commitments since July 2024; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of this spending on the funding available for energy infrastructure projects.
Answered by Kerry McCarthy - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has made a number of spending commitments since July to deliver the UK’s pledge, announced in 2019, to spend £11.6 billion in International Climate Finance (ICF) between April 2021 and March 2026. The £11.6 billion commitment is from the UK’s Official Development Assistance budget, currently set on a temporary basis at 0.5% per cent of Gross National Income.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the UK's (a) biosecurity and (b) border control measures for imported goods.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to protecting our biosecurity and we are using a risk based approach to maintain the appropriate level of controls.
Defra will continue to monitor for new and emerging risks and review the border control checks introduced under the Border Target Operating Model (BTOM).
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the findings of the report entitled An impact analysis of APR reforms on commercial family farms, published by the National Farmers Union on 21 November 2024 on the acreage of land relating to Agricultural Property Relief claims on assets of less than £250,000 in the 2021-22 financial year.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
That report draws on Defra analysis on asset value. Tax liabilities for individual farm businesses depend on personal circumstances. It is not possible to accurately infer a future inheritance tax liability from data on farm asset values. This is because asset value alone does not necessarily mean that the farm will be affected, as it depends on individual circumstances.
From 6 April 2026, the full 100% relief from inheritance tax will be restricted to the first £1 million of combined agricultural and business property. Above this amount, landowners will access 50% relief from inheritance tax and will pay inheritance tax at a reduced effective rate up to 20%, rather than the standard 40%. This tax can be paid in instalments over 10 years interest free, rather than immediately, as with other types of inheritance tax.
This is on top of all the other spousal exemptions and nil-rate bands that people can access for inheritance tax too. This means that two people with farmland, depending on their circumstances, can pass on up to £3 million without paying any inheritance tax. This is an assumption based on the £1 million limit and nil-rate bands and does not take into consideration the specific circumstances that may affect the tax calculation. Furthermore, if land is transferred 7 years before death, farmers pay no inheritance tax at all.
With 73% of claims being for less than £1 million, the majority of estates will be unaffected, and they will be able to pass the family farm down to their children just as previous generations have always done. This is a fair and balanced approach that protects the family farm while also fixing the public services that we all rely on.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the evidential basis on which her Department's estimate of the total number of farms affected by proposed changes to Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief included agricultural properties for which (a) only Agricultural Property Relief was claimed, (b) Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief were claimed and (c) only Business Property Relief was claimed in the 2021-22 financial year.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Information on APR and BPR reforms can be found in the policy briefing paper published at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms/summary-of-reforms-to-agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief#statistical-annex-distribution-of-claims-at-death-for-agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-in-2021-to-2022.
Additionally, more information behind the approach adopted is available in the Chancellor's recent letter to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee at: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to prevent (a) large corporations and (b) investment firms from acquiring agricultural land sold to meet inheritance tax liabilities.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
From 6 April 2026, the full 100% relief from inheritance tax will be restricted to the first £1 million of combined agricultural and business property. Above this amount, landowners will access 50% relief from inheritance tax and will pay inheritance tax at a reduced effective rate up to 20%, rather than the standard 40%. This tax can be paid in instalments over 10 years interest free, rather than immediately, as with other types of inheritance tax.
This is on top of all the other spousal exemptions and nil-rate bands that people can access for inheritance tax too. This means that two people with farmland, depending on their circumstances, can pass on up to £3 million without paying any inheritance tax. This is an assumption based on the £1 million limit and nil-rate bands and does not take into consideration the specific circumstances that may affect the tax calculation. Furthermore, if land is transferred seven years before death, farmers pay no inheritance tax at all.
With 73% of claims being for less than £1 million, the majority of estates will be unaffected, and they will be able to pass the family farm down to their children just as previous generations have always done. This is a fair and balanced approach that protects the family farm while also fixing the public services that we all rely on.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to agricultural property relief in the Autumn Budget 2024 on (a) patterns of agricultural land ownership, (b) rural employment, (c) agricultural supply chains and (d) food production.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.
It is expected that up to around 2,000 estates will be affected by the changes to APR and BPR each year, with around half of those being claims that involve AIM shares. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (including those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) each year are expected to be unaffected by these reforms.
In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.