Asked by: Peter Gibson (Conservative - Darlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the Approved Mileage Allowance Payment rates were last reviewed; and when he next plans to review those rates in the context of high costs of road fuel.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
The Approved Mileage Allowance Payment (AMAP) rates aim to reflect running costs including fuel, servicing and depreciation. Depreciation is estimated to constitute the most significant proportion of the AMAP rates. Fuel costs only contribute to a fraction of AMAP rates and not the total rate.
Employers are not required to use AMAPs. Instead, they can agree to reimburse the actual cost incurred, where individuals can provide evidence of the expenditure, without an Income Tax or National Insurance charge arising.
As with all taxes and allowances, the Government keeps AMAP rates under review and any changes are considered by the Chancellor.
Asked by: Peter Gibson (Conservative - Darlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of varying the approved mileage reclaim rate of 45p per mile in light of increasing fuel costs.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government sets the Approved Mileage Allowance Payments (AMAPs) rates to minimise administrative burdens. AMAPs aim to reflect running costs including fuel, servicing and depreciation. Depreciation is estimated to constitute the most significant proportion of the AMAPs.
Employers are not required to use the AMAPs. Instead, they can agree to reimburse the actual cost incurred, where individuals can provide evidence of the expenditure, without an Income Tax or National Insurance charge arising.
Alternatively, they can choose to pay a different mileage rate that better reflects their employees’ circumstances. However, if the payment exceeds the amount due under AMAPs, and this results in a profit for the individual, they will be liable to pay Income Tax and National Insurance contributions on the difference.
The Government keeps this policy under review.
Asked by: Peter Gibson (Conservative - Darlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to remove VAT on audiobooks to bring tax policy in line with the zero VAT rate on physical and ebooks.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
At March Budget 2020, the Government announced the introduction of a zero rate of VAT on certain e-publications, including e-books, to support literacy and reading in all its forms and make it clear that e-books, e-newspapers, e-magazines, and academic e-journals are entitled to the same VAT treatment as their physical counterparts.
The extension of the zero rate of VAT to e-publications was introduced to provide consistency of approach between certain physical and digital publications, to support reading and literacy in all its forms. Audiobooks are already taxed consistently at the standard rate in both physical and digital formats.
The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT, but there are no current plans to extend the VAT zero rate to audiobooks.
Asked by: Peter Gibson (Conservative - Darlington)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps he has taken to support small breweries during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The Government recognises that breweries have been acutely disrupted by recent necessary restrictions to hospitality businesses.
On the 5 January the Chancellor announced that £594 million is being made available for Local Authorities and the Devolved Administrations to support businesses ineligible for grants for closed businesses, but who might be impacted by COVID-19 restrictions. This funding comes in addition to the £1.1 billion discretionary grant for Local Authorities previously announced. Local Authorities have discretion to determine how much funding to provide to businesses and have the flexibility to target local businesses that are important to their local economies.
Breweries have and will continue to benefit directly from Government support schemes, and indirectly from the support offered to the pubs and restaurants they supply, protecting jobs in the industry. The Government has acted to deliver support through: