Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support he plans to provide for increasing Government-funded debt advice.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government recognises the vital role that debt advice providers play in helping people in vulnerable circumstances. This is why the Government provided record levels of debt advice funding to the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) for free-to-client debt advice provision in England in 2020/21 and 2021/22. The Government and MaPS remain committed to help individuals in problem debt get their finances back on track, especially as some now face new challenges in the shape of the sharp rise in inflation.
On 14 February, MaPS confirmed funding levels for debt advice services in England over the next three financial years. Its budget for the delivery of frontline debt advice provision in England has risen to £76 million for each of the next three financial years (subject to the usual annual budget setting by the Government), recognising an anticipated increase in the need for debt advice. This represents a significant increase from pre-pandemic levels of funding, which totalled £43 million in 2019/20.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many complaints his Department has received about deeds or letters of assignment in (a) 2019-20, (b) 2020-21 and (c) 2021-22 to date; and what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of HMRC's complaint handling procedure in respect of the validity of a deed or letter of assignment.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
The table below shows the complaints relating to Deed of Assignment received over the last 3 years at each complaints stage. Please note there could be small numbers of additional complaints which have not clearly been designated within HMRC’s complaints handling system, but which do relate to the same issue. A manual review would be required to identify those additional complaints, which was not possible in the time available.
| Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Adjudicator |
2019-20 | 137 | 4 | 0 |
2020 -21 | 272 | 9 | 3 |
2021 - YTD | 338 | 19 | 1 |
Following an increase in complaints in relation to the validity of deeds or letters of assignment, HMRC has reviewed its complaint handling for these cases. Following a review with appropriate stakeholders, HMRC investigates by:
HMRC do not accredit or in any way approve agents and take firm action against any who are not complying with the law.
HMRC has announced its intention to run a consultation this year on ways to tackle the high costs to customers who claim tax refunds. The consultation is part of HMRC’s work on raising standards in the tax advice market. A range of individuals and consumer interest groups have raised concerns that customers are being charged excessive amounts by some agents for claiming routine tax repayments on their behalf and that the terms under which services are provided are not made clear. The aim of the consultation is to seek wider views on the scope of the problem and consider potential solutions.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many deeds or letters of assignment have been sent to HMRC to be lodged on taxpayer records in (a) 2019-20, (b) 2020-21 and (c) 2021-22 to date; how many of those deeds or letters of assignment have been passed to HMRC's Solicitor's Office and Legal Services to check for validity; and how many were subsequently rejected as invalid.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Information in the form requested is not readily available and could only be obtained, compiled, and collated at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many income tax refunds were paid directly to third party agents instead of taxpayers in accordance with a deed or letter of assignment; and what the total value of those refunds was in each of the financial years (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21 and (d) 2021-22 to date.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Information in the form requested is not readily available and could only be obtained, compiled, and collated at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the number of properties evading tax liabilities by not registering as private rented accommodation.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
The information requested is not available.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many payments were made to the Government's Donations and Bequests Account in respect of the National Debt in financial year 2020-21; and what the value of those payments was.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
In the financial year 2020-21 there were 17 payments made to the Government’s Donations and Bequests Account in respect of the National Debt and the total value of those payments was £565,348.96.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of bank closures on local communities.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The decision to close a branch is a commercial issue for banks and building societies and the Government does not intervene in these decisions or make direct assessments of the impact of closures.
However, the Government does believe that the impact on communities should be understood, considered and mitigated where possible. That is why the Government continues to be supportive of the Access to Banking Standard which commits firms to ensure customers are well informed about branch closures, the bank’s reasons for closure and options for continued access to banking services. These include the Post Office, which allows 95% of business and 99% of personal banking customers to carry out their everyday banking at 11,500 Post Office branches across the UK.
In September 2020, the FCA also published guidance setting out its expectation of firms when they are deciding to reduce their physical branches or the number of free-to-use ATMs. Firms are expected to carefully consider the impact of a planned closure on their customers’ everyday banking and cash access needs, and other relevant branch services and consider possible alternative access arrangements. This will ensure the implementation of closure decisions is undertaken in a way that treats customers fairly.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many small businesses rely on cash to function in the UK.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Research commissioned by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) in 2019 found that over half of small businesses accepted cash while it accounted for only 14% of their income on average.
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted cash usage in the short-term and is likely to have accelerated the longer-term trends of declining cash use. However, it is too early to determine the lasting effect. In November 2020, the Bank of England published their Quarterly Bulletin, which included analysis of cash acceptance. Based on a survey in July 2020 they found that 42% of people had visited a store in the previous six months that did not accept cash. That represented an increase on the January figure of 15%.
The Government created the Joint Authorities Cash Strategy Group in 2019, which has provided a forum for the public bodies to formally co-ordinate respective approaches to access to cash. This is chaired by HM Treasury and attended by the Bank of England, PSR, and Financial Conduct Authority. The Group published an update on the actions of the Group’s members in July 2020. The Government continues to engage with the regulators to monitor and assess risks around cash, including those resulting from COVID-19. In order to help control the virus, all businesses and individuals are encouraged to follow the latest Government advice. To work safely, retailers have been recommended to minimise contact around transactions, for example, considering using contactless payments. It remains the individual retailer’s choice as to whether to accept or decline any form of payment, including cash or card.
The Government has committed to bring forward legislation to ensure that the UK’s cash infrastructure is sustainable for the long term. In October 2020, the Government published a Call for Evidence on Access to Cash, which sought views on the key considerations associated with cash access, including deposit and withdrawal facilities, cash acceptance, and regulatory oversight of the cash system. The Government is considering responses to the Call for Evidence and will set out next steps in due course.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will ensure that HMRC applies FCA definitions of financial vulnerability when considering whether to refer customers to its extra support team.
Answered by Jesse Norman
HMRC continually review how to identify customers in financial hardship so that it can offer support to them. As part of this work, they work closely with Government departments and other stakeholders, including the debt advice sector, for insights on good practice which they mirror to support customers. The department has trained collectors to identify vulnerable customers who, when identified, are referred to HMRC’s established Extra Support team for assistance.
HMRC also work to meet the Financial Conduct Authority’s guidelines where practicable. HMRC are the first Government department to become a referral partner for the Money Adviser Network, a pilot led by the Money and Pensions Service. The partnership helps HMRC test a better way to refer Tax Credits debtors to free and independent debt advice. It is a priority for HMRC to help their customers to access specialist debt advice support that is available to them; as a responsible creditor, HMRC recognise that customer debt worries often extend beyond the debt that they have with the department.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on enabling taxpayers to challenge HMRC discretionary decisions regarding access to time to pay arrangements.
Answered by Jesse Norman
HMRC have a very good track record for supporting individuals and viable businesses in genuine short-term financial difficulty and will always work with taxpayers to find the best possible solution. A Time to Pay arrangement is a negotiated agreement that HMRC operates within their statutory obligations to collect tax as quickly as possible. HMRC will always work with taxpayers to find the best possible solution, based on their specific circumstances.