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Written Question
Revenue and Customs: Officers
Friday 28th October 2022

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that all complaints of racism and discriminatory behaviour by HMRC officers are investigated; and if he will make a statement.

Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Bullying, harassment, and discrimination of any kind, including racial discrimination, has no place whatsoever at HMRC. The wellbeing of all staff is a top priority, and HMRC does not tolerate any behaviour that makes staff, or taxpayers, feel uncomfortable. HMRC has policies which cover what action individuals can take if they experience discrimination within the workplace, and has developed comprehensive guidance on how to raise a concern. All concerns are investigated in accordance with the Civil Service investigation standards. HMRC has introduced a number of services to ensure staff can speak up if they see, hear, or experience anything that gives them a cause for concern. It has also introduced steps to ensure that complaints are investigated impartially with the decision taken by an independent decision manager with full support from expert HR advisers.



Written Question
Revenue and Customs: Officers
Friday 28th October 2022

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how long it takes to be trained as an authorised officer of HMRC with the power of arrest.

Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Within HMRC, only authorised officers in the Fraud Investigation Service have the power of arrest. These officers receive extensive training in HMRC’s criminal investigation powers, procedures, and safeguards, including the power of arrest. This training takes 69.5 weeks and is a combination of taught class room training and assessed practical training and is accredited by the University of Northumbria.
Written Question
Revenue and Customs: Officers
Friday 28th October 2022

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average (a) level of experience and (b) salary is of a Grade 7 HMRC officer; and whether a trainee would be ranked as Grade 7.

Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

HMRC are unable to answer the question on the average level of experience of a Grade 7 (G7) HMRC Officer. There are several thousand G7 officers in HMRC each of whom have their own unique career history. In total, the group covers over 27 professions and a significant number of different role types. Each individual will retain their own career history, including experience and qualifications which will be discussed with their manager. In view of the significant variances in experience and roles, no central record is retained.

For similar reasons, HMRC are unable to answer the question on whether a trainee would be ranked as a G7 as in some roles and professions it would and others not. It can take anywhere from 3 years for fast-track training roles or up to 20 years plus for average career progression from junior entry grade.

Below is a table showing both the National and London pay ranges for a HMRC G7:

2022 Grade 7 Pay Ranges - 01 June 2022

Grade

National
Minimum

National
Maximum

London
Minimum

London
Maximum

Grade 7 (7)

£52,598

£59,294

£59,182

£66,712


Written Question
Revenue and Customs: Training
Wednesday 26th October 2022

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether HMRC officers are trained in respect on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 including on data protection.

Answered by Richard Fuller

All HMRC officers are required to complete mandatory training on data protection, which includes topics such as data retention, the need for a legal basis for personal data processing, and the need to be aware of other relevant legislation.

HMRC does not mandate specific training on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 but officers are able to access training on other areas according to need.


Written Question
Alcoholic Drinks: Excise Duties
Wednesday 3rd March 2021

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many meetings officials in his Department have had on alcohol duty with representatives of the (a) alcohol industry and (b) public health organisations in each of the last six months.

Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade

Treasury Ministers and officials regularly meet with representatives of the alcohol industry, and public health stakeholders, to discuss alcohol duty and related issues, including the health impacts of alcohol as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel


Written Question
Alcoholic Drinks: Excise Duties
Wednesday 3rd March 2021

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many meetings Ministers in his Department have had on alcohol duty with representatives of the (a) alcohol industry and (b) public health organisations in each of the last six months.

Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade

Treasury Ministers and officials regularly meet with representatives of the alcohol industry, and public health stakeholders, to discuss alcohol duty and related issues, including the health impacts of alcohol as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel


Written Question
Alcoholic Drinks: Excise Duties
Wednesday 3rd March 2021

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many meetings he has had with representatives (a) of the alcohol industry and (b) from public health organisations to discuss alcohol duty in the last six months.

Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade

Treasury Ministers and officials regularly meet with representatives of the alcohol industry, and public health stakeholders, to discuss alcohol duty and related issues, including the health impacts of alcohol as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel


Written Question
Lone Parents: Coronavirus
Friday 23rd October 2020

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what financial support is available for single parents who cannot work from home and whose children are instructed to self-isolate without having a positive covid-19 test.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Government has committed to an unprecedented package of support for individuals through this difficult time. This includes the introduction of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, the Job Support Scheme, and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, as well as injecting an additional £9 billion into the welfare system according to Office for Budget Responsibility estimates.

If an employee earns average weekly earnings of at least £120 per week, they will be eligible for SSP if they are self-isolating under Government guidance and cannot work from home. This includes parents living in the same households as children self-isolating with symptoms of COVID-19. The Government has changed the rules so that SSP is now payable from day 1, not day 4, for COVID-19 cases.

Parents of children who are self-isolating under Government guidance may be eligible for “new style” contributory Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) if they are ineligible for SSP and unable to work from home. The Government has made it easier for people to claim by removing the seven-day waiting period which means people can get support from day one.

The welfare system is best placed to provide support for those not eligible for SSP. This group will benefit from changes to the welfare system to support the most vulnerable. These changes include a £20 per week increase to the UC standard allowance and Working Tax Credit basic element, and a nearly £1 billion increase in support for renters through increases to the Local Housing Allowance rates for UC and Housing Benefit claimants.


Written Question
Working Tax Credit: Blaydon
Friday 2nd October 2020

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many families with children have received the £20 per week uplift in working tax credit basic element payments in Blaydon in each month since it was introduced.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The latest available information on the number of families with children receiving Working Tax Credit at the parliamentary constituency level is for April 2020. In April 2020, the number of families with children receiving Working Tax Credit in Blaydon was 1,000.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-and-working-tax-credits-statistics-provisional-awards-geographical-analyses-december-2013.

Information on following months is not readily available. The next update to this publication will provide statistics relating to December 2020 and will be available in January 2021.

Final annual information on families with children receiving Working Tax Credits is published once a year and updated each July.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-and-working-tax-credits-statistics-finalised-annual-awards-2018-to-2019.


Written Question
Non-domestic Rates: Blaydon
Tuesday 23rd July 2019

Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to reduce the burden of business rates on (a) retailers and (b) businesses in Blaydon constituency.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Government concluded the last fundamental review of business rates in 2016. Respondents to the review agreed that property based taxes are easy to collect, difficult to avoid, relatively stable compared to other taxes, and that they have a clear link with local authority spending.

The Government has taken repeated action to reduce the burden of business rates for all ratepayers including retailers. Our Plan for the High Street announced at Budget 2018 provides £1 billion of upfront support through a new retail discount, cutting retailers’ business rates bills by a third for two years from 1 April 2019 subject to eligibility.

Reforms and reliefs announced since Budget 2016 are reducing business rates by more than £13 billion over the next five years. This includes switching from RPI to CPI indexation, increasing the threshold for the standard multiplier to £51,000, and doubling the threshold for Small Business Rate Relief, meaning 675,000 of the smallest businesses pay no business rates at all.