Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to require HMRC to review 2010 mileage rates to reflect 2025 costs.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Approved Mileage Allowance Payment rates are used by employers to reimburse an employee's expenses, tax free, for business mileage in their private vehicle. These rates are also used by self-employed drivers to claim tax relief on business mileage (when using simplified motoring expenses), and can be used by organisations to reimburse volunteers who use their own vehicle for voluntary purposes.
Employees can claim up to 45p/mile for the first 10,000 miles annually, followed by up to 25p/mile thereafter. An additional 5p/mile can be claimed for each passenger transported.
The AMAP rates are not mandatory, and employers can choose to pay more or less than the AMAP rate. It is therefore ultimately up to employers to determine the rate at which they reimburse their employees.
The Government keeps the Approved Mileage Allowance Payments (AMAPs) rate under review and HMRC use a variety of information in estimating typical motoring costs per business mile. This includes information from the AA, the National Travel Survey, the Association of British Insurers, and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how long has the HMRC helpline number 0300 200 3822 been out of service.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Debt management Self Assessment (SA) payment helpline, 0300 200 3822, was retired at the end of July 2025.
From March to July 2025, an announcement was played to all customers phoning the Debt management SA payment helpline advising them that the number had closed and providing the relevant HMRC helpline number to call.
Customers with SA debt or payment enquiries are still able to speak to an adviser by calling the phone number stated on the letter which they have received from HMRC.
Customers can also find further support and guidance on GOV.UK – including how to manage payments.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an estimate of the (a) value of and (b) tax lost from the black economy in (i) England, (ii) Greater Manchester and (iii) Oldham.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC estimates the size of the tax gap, which is the difference between the amount of tax that should, in theory, be paid to HMRC, and what is actually paid. The tax gap statistics are published annually and are available at: Measuring tax gaps - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Within the tax gap, HMRC publishes an illustrative breakdown by behaviour. For the 2023 to 2024 tax year, the estimated value of the hidden economy was £2.6 billion.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Office for Budget Responsibility.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is the UK’s independent forecaster and the Government is fully committed to the OBR’s independence and its vital role as a core part of our fiscal framework. That is why one of the first Acts of this Parliament introduced the fiscal lock so that the OBR could never be sidelined.
On 26 November 2025, the OBR’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook was accessed prematurely ahead of the Budget. The OBR’s investigation into this incident was published on 1 December. HM Treasury will work closely with the OBR to ensure robust security arrangements are in place for all future forecasts.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment has been made of recent trends in levels of illegal agriculture red diesel use.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Rebated fuels must be supplied by Registered Dealers in Controlled Oil who are approved by HMRC to ensure that fuel is only obtained by those entitled to use it.
Rebated fuels can only be used in eligible vehicles and machines when they are being used for a qualifying purpose, which includes agricultural activities.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the total number of calls (a) answered (b) abandoned was for each public helpline number provided by her Department and its executive agencies for each year from 2015 to date.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Every year, HMRC answers millions of calls. A call is recorded as ‘answered’ when a customer got through to an adviser after hearing the automated messages and choosing the option to speak to an adviser (this is also referred to as ‘adviser attempts handled’ (AAH) in HMRC published data).
A call is recorded as ‘abandoned’ when a customer hears the automated messages and chooses the option to speak to an adviser, but then hangs up before their call is answered.
Customers may hang up before their call is answered for a number of reasons. For example, they may have had their query answered by HMRC’s recorded messages, they may have found the information they require online or they may have decided to call back another time.
The below tables provide a breakdown of calls answered and calls abandoned over the past ten years for HMRC’s main helplines:
Calls answered | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 YTD |
Child Benefit | 1,815,166 | 2,071,590 | 2,009,135 | 1,777,736 | 1,712,300 | 1,386,818 | 1,569,267 | 1,377,817 | 1,017,140 | 1,142,678 | 833,880 |
National Insurance | 1,483,095 | 1,671,677 | 1,475,416 | 1,377,855 | 1,349,929 | 1,069,710 | 1,247,349 | 1,242,943 | 1,097,036 | 1,044,772 | 682,058 |
Tax Credits Helpline and Tax Credits Payment Helpline – combined figures | 11,509,090 | 11,581,913 | 9,265,206 | 6,671,778 | 4,557,161 | 2,343,044 | 1,895,384 | 1,587,633 | 1,147,483 | 647,815 | 109,086 |
Corporation Tax | 373,190 | 500,940 | 508,270 | 475,961 | 441,835 | 378,406 | 507,372 | 506,145 | 421,603 | 378,862 | 231,741 |
Stamp duty land tax | 112,333 | 154,415 | 164,259 | 144,667 | 131,610 | 100,624 | 122,429 | 122,582 | 107,538 | 103,229 | 71,526 |
Agent Dedicated Line | 1,707,224 | 1,851,753 | 1,432,405 | 1,360,234 | 1,374,380 | 705,308 | 968,925 | 1,041,355 | 640,405 | 503,105 | 289,091 |
Construction Industry Scheme Helpline | 584,630 | 496,413 | 376,861 | 343,789 | 334,675 | 225,708 | 293,478 | 281,009 | 239,920 | 168,990 | 94,016 |
Employers Helpline | 819,618 | 984,212 | 976,437 | 939,286 | 755,040 | 588,062 | 650,432 | 686,890 | 589,002 | 506,637 | 328,452 |
Online Services Helpline | 675,158 | 1,073,270 | 982,535 | 730,981 | 635,733 | 548,319 | 688,575 | 780,038 | 978,228 | 932,393 | 611,680 |
PAYE | 6,513,062 | 8,913,008 | 8,199,621 | 7,707,564 | 7,127,556 | 4,703,878 | 5,973,909 | 5,908,209 | 4,405,365 | 4,586,352 | 3,177,096 |
Self Assessment Helpline | 2,389,400 | 3,094,058 | 3,444,452 | 3,219,552 | 3,236,719 | 2,560,862 | 2,602,917 | 2,643,691 | 1,441,380 | 1,904,363 | 1,113,666 |
VAT | - | 282,301 | 644,072 | 585,882 | 771,572 | 500,095 | 623,494 | 657,205 | 486,335 | 395,747 | 277,184 |
Calls abandoned | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 YTD |
Child Benefit | 653,242 | 190,353 | 147,771 | 171,017 | 224,611 | 194,436 | 267,186 | 410,792 | 332,543 | 256,223 | 146,160 |
National Insurance | 891,375 | 126,759 | 118,987 | 156,762 | 132,920 | 109,035 | 196,346 | 415,222 | 336,696 | 277,058 | 84,032 |
Tax Credits Helpline and Tax Credits Payment Helpline – combined figures | 2,295,327 | 596,654 | 726,769 | 599,007 | 539,088 | 360,618 | 565,334 | 420,411 | 334,029 | 208,923 | 10,735 |
Corporation Tax | 99,498 | 37,064 | 51,406 | 45,763 | 63,957 | 35,267 | 78,894 | 89,900 | 68,084 | 56,574 | 35,108 |
Stamp duty land tax | 16,518 | 9,969 | 12,634 | 13,924 | 16,321 | 6,208 | 10,556 | 17,648 | 10,108 | 8,384 | 5,989 |
Agent Dedicated Line | 13,821 | 24,219 | 11,413 | 5,127 | 7,855 | 175,775 | 110,683 | 119,404 | 115,316 | 85,356 | 28,577 |
Construction Industry Scheme Helpline | 72,500 | 31,310 | 37,289 | 39,095 | 33,566 | 29,732 | 36,743 | 49,250 | 37,574 | 19,087 | 10,167 |
Employers Helpline | 226,890 | 50,288 | 63,019 | 66,163 | 62,852 | 63,135 | 86,365 | 138,787 | 122,053 | 125,470 | 81,521 |
Online Services Helpline | 350,563 | 138,027 | 97,650 | 108,720 | 119,130 | 126,824 | 128,903 | 235,456 | 197,111 | 226,446 | 76,031 |
PAYE | 2,755,469 | 401,321 | 840,726 | 917,232 | 1,067,304 | 1,427,842 | 1,303,284 | 1,769,338 | 1,765,227 | 1,248,174 | 628,559 |
Self Assessment Helpline | 1,193,023 | 206,772 | 372,471 | 380,719 | 443,148 | 611,544 | 689,007 | 1,144,135 | 704,546 | 523,645 | 201,569 |
VAT | - | 13,143 | 43,173 | 84,539 | 72,648 | 62,494 | 127,450 | 162,969 | 150,244 | 72,014 | 36,010 |
Further telephony data is published as part of HMRC’s quarterly performance reports: www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-quarterly-performance-updates
And HMRC publishes a historical data series as part of its annual report and accounts: www.gov.uk/government/publications/hmrc-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-to-2025
Data covering VOA helplines:
Financial Year | Answered | Abandoned |
2015-16 | 283711 | 49173 |
2016-17 | 327896 | 67348 |
2017-18 | 232687 | 56334 |
2018-19 | 225205 | 72898 |
2019-20 | 261216 | 97460 |
2020-21 | 106016 | 27554 |
2021-22 | 222467 | 38949 |
2022-23 | 218353 | 37896 |
2023-24 | 202043 | 52191 |
2024-25 | 201663 | 71225 |
2025-2026 (YTD) | 129319 | 19618 |
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress she has made on reforming Common Bond provisions for Credit Unions.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recognises the role that credit unions play in providing savings and affordable loans to their members, serving local communities throughout the country. This is why the government is taking steps to ensure credit unions are fully supported to grow and scale into the future. This includes running a call for evidence on reforms to the credit union common bond, which closed in March.
After reviewing responses to this call for evidence, the government has committed to a package of growth-focused reforms to the credit union common bond. This was announced in the Financial Inclusion Strategy published on 5 November. The government will provide a further update on this work in due course.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of potential lost tax revenue from international corporations importing large product volumes operating on a direct to consumer basis.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government does not hold data to estimate tax revenue losses specifically from international corporations importing large product volumes operating on a direct to consumer basis.
Such economic activity can give rise to a range of different taxes and duties, including Corporation Tax, VAT, customs duty and excise duty, and the impact would depend on the specific circumstances of each business and transaction.
HMRC actively monitors compliance with UK tax and customs obligations and uses a range of tools, including risk-based audits and data analytics, to tackle non-compliance.
The Chancellor has reviewed the existing customs arrangements for Low Value Imports, and as a result, the Chancellor announced at Autumn Budget 2025 the removal of the customs duty relief on goods imported into the UK worth less than £135. In addition to the relief removal, the government is reforming the way these goods are declared into the UK to ensure all goods are appropriately controlled. These changes will come into effect from March 2029 at the latest and are expected to raise c. £500m p.a. in each of the final two years of the scorecard period.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department is taking to help support the growth of the mutual banking and building society sector.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government is committed to supporting the growth of building societies and all mutual financial services in line with the manifesto commitment to double the size of the mutual and co-operative sector. HM Treasury has already announced measures to support financial mutuals and is currently progressing these.
For building societies, HM Treasury has committed to progressing further amendments to the Building Societies Act 1986. This follows two statutory instruments being laid in October 2024, which allow building societies to accept deposits from a wider range of SMEs, remove outdated director retirement requirements, and simplify how balance sheets are signed. These will create a more supportive legislative environment for building societies.
To support all financial mutuals, HM Treasury has also asked the Prudential Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority to produce a report on the current landscape of the sector. This is expected to be published before the end of 2025. The government also welcomed the establishment of the Mutual and Co-operative Sector Business Council to consider mutual and co-operative solutions. The government also published the Financial Services Growth and Competitiveness Strategy, which will support all organisations in the financial services sector and encourages the sector to continue to work in partnership with government to deliver growth. Finally, the government is also supporting the credit union sector by committing to bringing forward a package of growth-focused reforms to the credit union common bond.
The government continues to engage regularly with mutuals to understand the current barriers they face and consider further opportunities to help the sector grow.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate her Department has made of the number and proportion of retail businesses that only accept cash.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises that cash continues to be used by millions of people across the UK, including those in vulnerable groups, and is committed to protecting access to cash for individuals and businesses.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) assumed regulatory responsibility for access to cash in September 2024. Its rules ensure cash continues to be a viable method of payment for the millions of people who depend on it and help businesses to continue to accept cash by providing reasonable access to cash deposit facilities.
It is for each business to decide on the forms of payment it chooses to accept. This will be based on a variety of factors, including cost and customer preferences. The Government does not hold data on the number and proportion of businesses who only accept cash.