Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many businesses received lending from Community Development Finance Institutions in the latest year for which information is available.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Treasury does not collect data on Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) directly. Responsible Finance, the national membership body for responsible finance providers, which includes CDFIs, routinely publishes information about the activity of the sector.
The link to Responsible Finance’s latest Impact Report, which includes information about CDFIs total value of lending and the number of supported business, can be found here: https://responsiblefinance.org.uk/policy-research/
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the total value of lending provided by Community Development Finance Institutions in each year since 2020.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Treasury does not collect data on Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) directly. Responsible Finance, the national membership body for responsible finance providers, which includes CDFIs, routinely publishes information about the activity of the sector.
The link to Responsible Finance’s latest Impact Report, which includes information about CDFIs total value of lending and the number of supported business, can be found here: https://responsiblefinance.org.uk/policy-research/
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, a) how many tax reliefs have been formally evaluated by HM Revenue and Customs since publication of the Treasury Committee's report, Tax Reliefs, Twentieth Report of Session 2022–23 and b) which reliefs have been evaluated in that period.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
Since 26th July 2023 HMRC has published 17 evaluation reports on tax reliefs. These reports have covered the following relief areas:
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what data his Department holds on the take up of Help to Save scheme; and what steps his Department is taking to increase rates of take-up.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC publishes data on Help to Save as part of the Annual Savings Statistics: September 2026. The latest statistics show that 656,700 Help to Save accounts have been opened since the scheme began, with 293,600 accounts open as of April 2026. Around 85,100 accounts were opened between April 2025 and March 2026, compared with 55,750 in the previous 12 months.
Since the scheme began in 2018, 566,650 people have deposited into a Help to Save account, an increase of around 14% from April 2025. Among those making deposits, the average monthly deposit was £48, with 94% of monthly deposits at the maximum £50.
The Government promotes Help to Save through targeted digital and social media advertising, direct communications with eligible customers, and engagement with trusted partner organisations to raise awareness and encourage take-up.
The Government’s Help to Save Reform Delivery Consultation Response, published in June 2026, confirmed that Help to Save will move to a multi-provider delivery model, enabling approved banks, building societies and credit unions to offer Help to Save accounts directly to eligible customers. These reforms are intended to increase awareness, accessibility and take-up of the scheme.
Eligibility was expanded in April 2025 to all working Universal Credit claimants earning £1 or more and will be expanded further in 2028 to include all Universal Credit claimants with children or caring responsibilities.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether HM Treasury has designated core in-office collaboration days for staff; and if he will publish details of those arrangements.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)
HM Treasury does not have designated core in-office collaboration days. Employees are expected to spend at least 60% of their working time in the office, with attendance arrangements agreed locally by employees, their line managers and teams to support effective collaboration and pastoral support. There are therefore no such arrangements to publish.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to question (28309) a) how many people claimed Tax-Free Childcare in each tax year since the scheme was introduced and b) what information is held about their incomes.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The number of families who have a Tax-Free Childcare account that has been used to make a payment to a childcare provider each year is available in the publication linked below (Table 1):
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tax-free-childcare-quarterly-statistics
Income information from HMRC systems is used to assess whether an applicant meets the eligibility criteria at the point of application and subsequent reconfirmations. HMRC does not store income figures from these checks.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what take-up there has been of the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme since July 2025 and how take-up compares with the predecessor scheme.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The new Mortgage Guarantee Scheme is designed to support and sustain the availability of low deposit mortgage products for credit-worthy borrowers. 95% loan-to-value mortgage products can be particularly important for first-time buyers who may struggle to raise larger deposits, and the scheme aims to support this segment of the UK mortgage market.
The Scheme launched in July 2025 and will now remain permanently available to lenders. Properties of any value are eligible for the mortgage guarantee, and the scheme is available in all regions of the UK.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the bespoke departmental efficiency targets and plans.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Yes. The Government accepted the recommendation from the Office for Value for Money, to publish bespoke efficiency targets and plans biennially, embedding a culture of continuous improvement backed up by greater confidence in delivery. Previous Departmental Efficiency Plans and targets were published on Gov.uk at Spending Review 2025.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he accepts the recommendation from the Office for Value for Money to conduct thematic value for money reviews and publish the terms of reference of these reviews in 2026.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on on 5 January 2026 in response to Question HL13130.
The terms of reference for these reviews were published on gov.uk in January 2026.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish analysis of the usage of structural and non-structural tax reliefs in force during 2024-25.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
HMRC recognises around 1,200 tax reliefs. Of these, 340 are non-structural and the remaining are structural.
The most recent HMRC statistical publication covering costings and usage of structural and non-structural reliefs, where available, is the annual Tax Relief Statistics publication. The latest publication was released on 22 January 2026, and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-reliefs