Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make it her policy to extend deemed reseller rules to cover UK-established sellers to help mitigate potential risks of unfair competition from overseas sellers.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Since 1 January 2021 overseas sellers, or online marketplaces where they facilitate the sale, are required to be registered and account for VAT for supplies of low value imports of £135 or less. Where an overseas seller sells goods located in the UK at the point of sale via an online marketplace, the online marketplace is liable for the VAT for goods of any value.
The changes were introduced to ensure a level playing field for UK high street and online retailers, ensure the continued flow of goods at the border and improve compliance.
Certified analysis by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) estimates the changes will raise £1.8 billion per annum by 2026-27.
The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 1.7 of her Department's publication entitled Transforming Business Rates, published on 30 October 2024, what estimate she has made of the amount of tax relief in (a) monetary terms and (b) as a reduced multiplier.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
In 2025-26, Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) relief will provide RHL properties 40% relief up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and the small business multiplier will be frozen at 49.9p.
This is a package worth over £1.6 billion, aimed at supporting the most vulnerable businesses. It will ensure that over 250,000 RHL properties receive the full 40% support, and in total, government support will protect over a million properties from inflationary increases.
The rates for new multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that the government can factor into its decision-making the next revaluation outcomes and the broader economic and fiscal context.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an estimate of the additional revenue generated following the reduction of business rate relief from 75% to 40% for the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors in the 2025-26 financial year.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) relief is a single year policy intervention. As such, the baseline scorecard assumption for 2025-26 was for RHL relief to not be extended.
At Autumn Budget, the Government announced that from 2026-27, it intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for RHL properties, including those on the high street. To support this transition, the Government has prevented RHL relief from ending in April 2025 by extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business, and frozen the small business multiplier. This package is worth more than £1.6 billion in 2025-26.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to her plans for a retail, hospitality and leisure multiplier in 2026-27 and the associated increase in the multiplier for hereditaments over £500,000, whether it is her policy that (a) the two policies will be revenue neutral and net off and (b) there will be a (i) positive or (ii) negative change in net receipts.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
As set out at Budget, the government intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for high-street retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties from 2026-27. However, this plan to support the high street must be sustainable. That is why we intend to apply a higher rate from 2026-27 on the most valuable properties - those with a Rateable Value of £500,000 and above. These represent less than one per cent of all properties, but include the majority of large distribution warehouses, including those used by online giants.
The Government will confirm the rates for the new multipliers at Budget 2025, taking account of the outcomes of the 2026 revaluation as well as the broader economic and fiscal context. As set out at Budget, the Government intends for the lower multipliers to be funded by the new higher multiplier.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the revenue raised by the Residential Property Developer Tax.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Residential Property Developer Tax (RPDT) is a 4% tax on the most profitable businesses undertaking UK residential property development to help pay for building safety remediation. The tax applies to developers' profits exceeding an annual allowance of £25 million for an accounting period.
The tax forms part of the government’s broader programme of work on building safety, which also includes significant capital funding (around £5.1bn) to remediate unsafe cladding on high-risk buildings.
According to HMRC’s latest Corporation Tax statistics, the tax raised £157 million in 2022-23 and £103 million in 2023-24.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans she has for revising her policy on accepting hospitality from the (a) football and (b) music industry.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the hon. Member to the answers by my hon. Friend, the Minister without Portfolio, during the Urgent Question, Reporting Ministerial Gifts and Hospitality, on 14 October 2024, Official Report, Columns 594-602.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether (a) her Department and (b) the Office for Budget Responsibility has made an assessment of a potential Laffer Curve effect relating to (i) tobacco and (ii) alcohol duties.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Under the assumptions used in tobacco and alcohol costings certified by the Office for Budget Responsibility at Spring Budget 2024, increasing tobacco and alcohol duties increases overall duty receipts.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Institute of Fiscal Studies' finding relating to the fall in revenues from tobacco duty over the last decade, outlined on page 42 of its report entitled The outlook for the public finances in the new parliament, published on 10 October 2024, what steps she is taking to help tackle the illicit and non-duty paid markets for tobacco.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) launched its first strategy to tackle illicit tobacco in 2000. This, and consequent strategies with Border Force, have reduced the overall tobacco duty tax gap from 21.7% in 2005/6 to 14.5% in 2022/23.
During this time, the duty gap for cigarettes has reduced by a third, and for hand-rolling tobacco by a half.
In January this year HMRC and Border Force published their latest illicit tobacco strategy, ‘Stubbing Out the Problem’. The government is committed to reducing the trade in illicit tobacco with a focus on reducing demand, and tackling and disrupting the organised crime groups behind the illicit tobacco trade.
The strategy is supported by £100 million of new smokefree funding over the next 5 years to boost existing HMRC and Border Force enforcement capability.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 42 of the Institute of Fiscal Studies' report entitled The outlook for the public finances in the new parliament, published on 10 October 2024, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential implications for its policies of the Office for Budget Responsibility's estimate of the impact of the generational smoking ban on revenue from tobacco excise duty by 2060.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to delivering its two key objectives on tobacco duty; to raise revenue and protect public health. High taxes reduce the affordability of tobacco products and supports the Government’s objective to reduce smoking prevalence.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will be the biggest public health intervention in a generation – tackling the harms of smoking and paving the way for a smoke-free UK. Alongside the Bill, DHSC will publish an impact assessment which will include an estimate for the impact on tobacco duty receipts.
The Government has consulted on proposals for a Vaping Products Duty. This would seek to discourage non-smokers and young people from taking up vaping and to raise revenue. The responses to this consultation are being reviewed and we will respond in due course.
As with all taxes, the Government keeps tobacco duty rates under review during its Budget process.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential implications for its policies of the Institute of Fiscal Studies' finding relating to tobacco excise duty outlined in paragraph 10, page 3 of its report entitled The outlook for the public finances in the new parliament, published on 10 October 2024.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to delivering its two key objectives on tobacco duty; to raise revenue and protect public health. High taxes reduce the affordability of tobacco products and supports the Government’s objective to reduce smoking prevalence.
The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will be the biggest public health intervention in a generation – tackling the harms of smoking and paving the way for a smoke-free UK. Alongside the Bill, DHSC will publish an impact assessment which will include an estimate for the impact on tobacco duty receipts.
The Government has consulted on proposals for a Vaping Products Duty. This would seek to discourage non-smokers and young people from taking up vaping and to raise revenue. The responses to this consultation are being reviewed and we will respond in due course.
As with all taxes, the Government keeps tobacco duty rates under review during its Budget process.