Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of ending the Sovereign Grant and redirecting those funds to help tackle increases in the cost-of-living for low income households.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Under the Sovereign Grant Act 2011, the Sovereign Grant is determined in accordance with a formula. That formula operates with a reference to a percentage of The Crown Estate’s profits two financial years previously. The percentage is currently set at 12 per cent. In exchange for the Sovereign Grant, the Monarch surrenders the revenue from The Crown Estate to the government – more than £4 billion over the last ten years.
Regarding support for low-income families, the government is announcing measures to support households who face the greatest hardships. This package of measures will improve economic security and resilience for those who need it most.
At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government announced the Fair Repayment Rate which lowers the cap on deductions in Universal Credit to 15 per cent of the standard allowance from April 2025. This will benefit 1.2 million households, with families expected to be better off by around £420 a year on average. This measure supports the government’s ambition to tackle child poverty – with 700,000 of the poorest families with children benefitting as a result of this change.
In addition, the Government will provide £1 billion (including Barnett impact) to extend the Household Support Fund in England, and Discretionary Housing Payments in England and Wales. This will help individuals and families facing the greatest hardship, including supporting them with the cost of essentials such as food, energy and housing. This builds on the previous investment of £500 million (including Barnett impact) to extend the Household Support Fund to 31 March 2025.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an estimate of the cost to the public purse of a removing Value Added Tax on automatic external defibrillators.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The Government provides VAT reliefs to aid the purchase of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) through VAT refunds on purchases made by local authorities including parish councils, and VAT reliefs for purchases made through voluntary contributions where the AED is donated to eligible charities or the NHS.
The cost of relieving VAT on AEDs is uncertain owing to the lack of data on purchases of these devices. Businesses are not required to provide information at a product level in their VAT returns, as this may impose an excessive administrative burden.
The Government is currently inviting community organisations to bid for funding as part of a £1 million grant scheme that expands public access to AEDs, particularly in public places where they are most needed.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the analysis of school funding published by School Cuts; and whether his Department plans to increase funding for schools in 2024-2025.
Answered by Laura Trott - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
This Government has continually prioritised school funding.
Funding for schools will total over £57.7 billion this year – a rise of over £3.9 billion compared to 2022-23, on top of a £4 billion cash increase last year. That is a 16% increase in just two years.
Funding for schools in 2024-25 will increase again, to £59.6 billion – the highest ever level in real terms per pupil.
The Department for Education provides additional support for schools, including an extensive programme to help them make the most of the funding available to them.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of adoptive parents who waited more than five weeks for approval of their application for child benefit in 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
While information is collected on birth child, adopted child and stepchild as part of the Child Benefit claim form, this information is not made available to HMRC for statistical analysis, and therefore the data cannot be used to categorize children/claims into adopted children.
HMRC do have a “where’s my reply Tool” Check-when-you-can-expect-a-reply-from-HMRC which shows general processing time frames when customers have submitted a Child Benefit claim.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential financial impact on adoptive parents of the average time taken to have their application for child benefit approved.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
While information is collected on birth child, adopted child and stepchild as part of the Child Benefit claim form, this information is not made available to HMRC for statistical analysis, and therefore the data cannot be used to categorize children/claims into adopted children.
HMRC do have a “where’s my reply Tool” Check-when-you-can-expect-a-reply-from-HMRC which shows general processing time frames when customers have submitted a Child Benefit claim.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the average length of time that adoptive parents wait for approval of their application for child benefit.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
While information is collected on birth child, adopted child and stepchild as part of the Child Benefit claim form, this information is not made available to HMRC for statistical analysis, and therefore the data cannot be used to categorize children/claims into adopted children.
HMRC do have a “where’s my reply Tool” Check-when-you-can-expect-a-reply-from-HMRC which shows general processing time frames when customers have submitted a Child Benefit claim.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the average wait time for applications for child benefit to be approved.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
While information is collected on birth child, adopted child and stepchild as part of the Child Benefit claim form, this information is not made available to HMRC for statistical analysis, and therefore the data cannot be used to categorize children/claims into adopted children.
HMRC do have a “where’s my reply Tool” Check-when-you-can-expect-a-reply-from-HMRC which shows general processing time frames when customers have submitted a Child Benefit claim.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of adoptive parents who waited more than five months for their application for child benefit to be approved in 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
While information is collected on birth child, adopted child and stepchild as part of the Child Benefit claim form, this information is not made available to HMRC for statistical analysis, and therefore the data cannot be used to categorize children/claims into adopted children.
HMRC do have a “where’s my reply Tool” Check-when-you-can-expect-a-reply-from-HMRC which shows general processing time frames when customers have submitted a Child Benefit claim.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of adoptive parents who waited more than three months for their application for child benefit to be approved in 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
While information is collected on birth child, adopted child and stepchild as part of the Child Benefit claim form, this information is not made available to HMRC for statistical analysis, and therefore the data cannot be used to categorize children/claims into adopted children.
HMRC do have a “where’s my reply Tool” Check-when-you-can-expect-a-reply-from-HMRC which shows general processing time frames when customers have submitted a Child Benefit claim.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of adoptive parents who waited more than four months for their child benefit application to be approved in 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
While information is collected on birth child, adopted child and stepchild as part of the Child Benefit claim form, this information is not made available to HMRC for statistical analysis, and therefore the data cannot be used to categorize children/claims into adopted children.
HMRC do have a “where’s my reply Tool” Check-when-you-can-expect-a-reply-from-HMRC which shows general processing time frames when customers have submitted a Child Benefit claim.