Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to prevent off-road motorcycles being declared as (a) used vehicles and (b) components of vehicles.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
There is no legal requirement for vehicles to be registered and licensed if they are used exclusively off the public roads. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) does operate a voluntary registration scheme for off-road vehicles, which can assist in the identification of complete, stolen off-road motorcycles.
To qualify to register an off-road vehicle, the vehicle can be new or used but it must be complete. It is not possible to register component parts. A declaration that the vehicle will only be used off road is also required.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations she has made to the Cuban authorities on the detention of religious leaders; and what steps she is taking to ensure the promotion of religious freedom in the country.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to championing freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all. No one should live in fear because of their faith. Our relationship with Cuba allows for frank dialogue, including on matters on which we do not agree. We continue to raise concerns where we have them, as we did through an open letter from the former Foreign Secretary in December 2024 to Pastor Lorenzo, expressing solidarity and calling on the Cuban authorities to release him. We were delighted to hear of his release in January.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the application of VAT to unredeemed deposits within the Deposit Return Scheme on (a) inflation and (b) consumer costs.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
HM Treasury, as the lead department, and HM Revenue & Customs are continuing to consider the best way of accounting for VAT on DRS deposits and will set out further detail in due course. The Government is committed to ensuring that the DRS operate effectively, and that VAT is not a barrier to them doing so.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of HMRC's approach to preventing (a) VAT and (b) duty evasion in the off-road motorcycle industry.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC collected a record £858.9 billion in taxes in 2024/25, an increase of 3.7% from the year before, which included £171.0 billion in VAT. HMRC has a strong track record in tackling all kinds of non-compliance. HMRC takes a risk-based and intelligence-led approach to enforcement and is continuously developing its capabilities to target and tackle all types of non-compliance. Assessments of the effectiveness of HMRC’s approach to prevent VAT and duty evasion are not available at that level of granularity.
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate her Department has made of the (a) VAT and (b) customs duty lost as a result of (i) undervaluation and (ii) misclassification of (A) imported off-road motorcycles and (B) related parts in each of the last five years.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC estimates the size of the tax gap, which is the difference between the amount of tax that should, in theory, be paid to HMRC, and what is actually paid. The tax gap statistics and details of the estimate methodologies are published annually and are available at:
Measuring tax gaps 2025 edition: tax gap estimates for 2023 to 2024 - GOV.UK
Estimates of the revenues lost from (i) undervaluation and (ii) misclassification of (A) imported off-road motorcycles and (B) related parts in each of the last five years are not available as the methodologies used in assessing the tax gap do not allow estimates to be made at such a granular level.