Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 4 of the report by the NAO entitled The Administrative Cost of the Tax System, published on 10 February 2025, if she will instruct HMRC to update its £15.4bn estimate of the cost to businesses of complying with the tax system.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The £15.4bn estimate of the cost to businesses of complying with the tax system contains in the NAO report comes from HMRC’s Standard Cost Model (SCM). This uses an internationally recognised approach to estimating these costs.
The SCM contains data on approximately 2,500 obligations across 27 policy areas, and is largely based on data collected from businesses and agents on the time and costs of complying with regulations.
HMRC is looking to reduce the complexity of the model so it is easier to update which may enable it to produce a more timely estimate of the cost to business.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will publish the sources of funding for each public sector pension scheme including balancing payments made by her Department for each fiscal year between 2020-21 and 2023-24.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Figures showing the net Exchequer balancing payments for unfunded Public Service Pension Schemes (PSPS), along with details on contribution income and scheme expenditure, are regularly published as part of the OBR’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO), including outturn figures for the previous fiscal year. For example, the March 2022 EFO includes Exchequer balancing figures for each major PSPS for 2020-21 in the table labelled “March 2022 Economic and fiscal outlook – supplementary fiscal tables: expenditure”: Economic and fiscal outlook - March 2022 - Office for Budget Responsibility The latest publication is included in the October 2024 EFO.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Summary of reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief, published on 30 October 2024, whether the £1 million threshold for the two reliefs will be uprated over this Parliament by inflation.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The allowance will be £1 million from 6 April 2026. Decisions about future increases will be taken in the same way as for other inheritance tax reliefs.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Summary of reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief published on 30 October 2024, how many estates she expects to be affected from the combined reforms to the two reliefs on which the £495 million estimate in revenue is derived in 2027-28.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
2021-22 is the latest available year for outturn statistics on APR and BPR claims. Further details around the timing of data releases for statistics around Inheritance Tax liabilities can be found in the ‘timeliness and punctuality’ section of the statistics’ Background Quality Report at:
The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.
It is expected that up to around 2,000 estates will be affected by the changes to APR and BPR. Up to around 520 of these are expected to relate to claims for APR (including those that also claim for BPR), and this number falls to around 430 when claims that include AIM shares are excluded. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (or those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) each year are expected to be unaffected by these reforms.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Summary of reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief, published on 30 October 2024, what equivalent figures HMRC hold on claims for the two reliefs for years after the 2021-22 tax year.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
2021-22 is the latest available year for outturn statistics on APR and BPR claims. Further details around the timing of data releases for statistics around Inheritance Tax liabilities can be found in the ‘timeliness and punctuality’ section of the statistics’ Background Quality Report at:
The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.
It is expected that up to around 2,000 estates will be affected by the changes to APR and BPR. Up to around 520 of these are expected to relate to claims for APR (including those that also claim for BPR), and this number falls to around 430 when claims that include AIM shares are excluded. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (or those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) each year are expected to be unaffected by these reforms.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to monitor NHS Trusts' adherence to (a) General Medical Council and (b) National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on patient records.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Each National Health Service trust is a data controller under the Data Protection Act 2018, and therefore responsible for ensuring the accuracy and integrity of their records. To assist trusts in fulfilling these responsibilities, a range of guidance and assurance is in place.
For example, NHS England publishes a Code of Practice on Records Management for all NHS trusts to follow. This covers all aspects of records management, including the accuracy and reliability of medical records. Each trust is responsible for following the principles and guidance set out in the code, which may include local measures, such as a record keeping audit, or monitoring the availability of records.
In addition, in line with the Code of Practice, NHS trusts are responsible for ensuring they have appropriate policies and procedures in place to manage their records. This will usually be a standalone records management policy, with associated procedures, such as how to destroy records.
Furthermore, NHS England’s Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) requires NHS trusts to understand legal and professional obligations for records management. The DSPT involves a periodic audit in which trusts have to demonstrate they are adhering to this requirement.
Regulators also set out professional standards for health and care professionals. For example, the General Medical Council’s Good Medical Practice requires doctors to make sure that formal records of their work, including patients' records, are clear, accurate, contemporaneous, and legible.
The Care Quality Commission has powers, under section 63(2)(b) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to access records held by the service that they are inspecting, where necessary, as part of their regulatory functions.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that NHS Trusts adhere to national guidelines on the (a) accuracy and (b) reliability of medical records.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Each National Health Service trust is a data controller under the Data Protection Act 2018, and therefore responsible for ensuring the accuracy and integrity of their records. To assist trusts in fulfilling these responsibilities, a range of guidance and assurance is in place.
For example, NHS England publishes a Code of Practice on Records Management for all NHS trusts to follow. This covers all aspects of records management, including the accuracy and reliability of medical records. Each trust is responsible for following the principles and guidance set out in the code, which may include local measures, such as a record keeping audit, or monitoring the availability of records.
In addition, in line with the Code of Practice, NHS trusts are responsible for ensuring they have appropriate policies and procedures in place to manage their records. This will usually be a standalone records management policy, with associated procedures, such as how to destroy records.
Furthermore, NHS England’s Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) requires NHS trusts to understand legal and professional obligations for records management. The DSPT involves a periodic audit in which trusts have to demonstrate they are adhering to this requirement.
Regulators also set out professional standards for health and care professionals. For example, the General Medical Council’s Good Medical Practice requires doctors to make sure that formal records of their work, including patients' records, are clear, accurate, contemporaneous, and legible.
The Care Quality Commission has powers, under section 63(2)(b) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to access records held by the service that they are inspecting, where necessary, as part of their regulatory functions.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what (a) policies and (b) procedures are in place across NHS Trusts to ensure that medical records are (i) accurate and (ii) evidence-based.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Each National Health Service trust is a data controller under the Data Protection Act 2018, and therefore responsible for ensuring the accuracy and integrity of their records. To assist trusts in fulfilling these responsibilities, a range of guidance and assurance is in place.
For example, NHS England publishes a Code of Practice on Records Management for all NHS trusts to follow. This covers all aspects of records management, including the accuracy and reliability of medical records. Each trust is responsible for following the principles and guidance set out in the code, which may include local measures, such as a record keeping audit, or monitoring the availability of records.
In addition, in line with the Code of Practice, NHS trusts are responsible for ensuring they have appropriate policies and procedures in place to manage their records. This will usually be a standalone records management policy, with associated procedures, such as how to destroy records.
Furthermore, NHS England’s Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) requires NHS trusts to understand legal and professional obligations for records management. The DSPT involves a periodic audit in which trusts have to demonstrate they are adhering to this requirement.
Regulators also set out professional standards for health and care professionals. For example, the General Medical Council’s Good Medical Practice requires doctors to make sure that formal records of their work, including patients' records, are clear, accurate, contemporaneous, and legible.
The Care Quality Commission has powers, under section 63(2)(b) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to access records held by the service that they are inspecting, where necessary, as part of their regulatory functions.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a requirement for insurance providers to request images of the front and back of an applicant’s driving licence as part of the quotation process.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Motor Insurers already have the option to sign up to the MyLicence service run by DVLA, where a motor insurer can check the electronic driver record of an applicant for all the relevant information. This service is predicated on direct consent from the individual seeking a policy quote.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will hold discussions with the Charity Commission on when the Commission plans to provide a substantive reply to the letter from the Conservative Party to the Commission of 14 June 2024, acknowledged by the Commission on 12 July 2024.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Charity Commission responded to the Conservative Party’s Legal Officer on 15th August 2024, providing a full update on the case in question.