Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has considered freezing or reducing the small business multiplier in response to rising fixed costs for SMEs.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 101363.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department plans to publish analysis of the business rates burden by sector and business size following the 2026 revaluation.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 101363.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the comparative impact of the 2026 business rates revaluation on (a) small retailers and (b) online distribution centres.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 101363.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to introduce further transitional relief for small businesses facing increases in business rates liabilities following the 2026 revaluation.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 101363.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the 2026 business rates revaluation on small businesses operating in high street premises.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to UIN 101363.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the impact of the 2025 Autumn Budget on business rates for pubs and hospitality venues; and whether she plans to review the business rates settlement for community-based pubs facing significant cost increases despite transitional relief.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base.
At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Government support also means that most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
More broadly, the Government is delivering a long overdue reform to rebalance the business rates system and support the high street, as promised in our manifesto. The Government is doing this by introducing permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties, including grassroots music venues, while ensuring that warehouses used by online giants will pay more. The new RHL tax rates replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since Covid.
Unlike RHL relief, the new rates are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit.
Without this support, pubs would have faced a 45% increase in the total bills they pay next year. However, because of the support the Government has put in place, this has fallen to just 4%.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the July 2019 implementation date of the Contingent Reimbursement Model Code on victims of authorised push payment scams that occurred before that date; and whether she plans to review redress mechanisms to ensure consistent treatment of victims regardless of when losses occurred.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government takes the issue of fraud very seriously and is dedicated to protecting the public from this appalling crime. To protect consumers, under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has introduced a mandatory reimbursement regime for Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams taking place over the Faster Payment system. This came into force on 7 October 2024. The details of the APP reimbursement regime are a matter for the independent PSR.
Transactions that occurred before 7 October 2024, may be governed by the Contingent Reimbursement Model (CRM), a voluntary code signed by the UK’s largest banks and building societies that came into force in May 2019. However, it is important to note that not all banks or building societies are party to the CRM code. The CRM code is overseen by the Lending Standards Board and more information can be found on their website.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of how the proposed new regulatory regime for non-transferable securities and mini-bonds would have applied to the High Street Group scheme had it been in force at the time; and what conclusions she has drawn from that assessment for the position of people impacted by that scheme.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the impact of the collapse of the High Street Group (HSG) on those who invested with it. The administrators of HSG estimate that the value of investments affected is about £123 million.
As the regulator of financial services in the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) stresses the importance of consumers getting the support they need and encourages consumers to only deal with FCA-authorised firms when making financial investments. HSG was not authorised by the FCA, and the issuing and distributing of its products was not a regulated activity. This means that investments made in HSG are not protected by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), unless the investment was via a regulated financial adviser or SIPP operator. As an important point of principle, the Government does not step in to pay compensation in respect of firms that fall outside of the FSCS. Doing so would create the wrong set of incentives for individuals and place an unnecessary burden on the taxpayer.
As HSG was not authorised by the FCA, and the issuing and distributing of its products is not a regulated activity, the FCA did not have supervisory oversight. The FCA does not have power to investigate a firm that is unauthorised and not carrying out any regulated activities and so the FCA's ability to intervene was limited. However, the promotion and marketing of such loan notes requires approval from FCA-authorised firms, unless a relevant exemption applies. The FCA has taken action against unauthorised promoters of HSG's investment scheme where financial promotions were made in breach of their rules. This action has included unannounced visits, warning letters and the removal of non-compliant financial promotions from the internet.
Action is being taken to reduce the risk of future investment schemes operating in this manner. The FCA has banned the mass marketing of speculative mini-bonds, which means firms with similar business models to HSG can no longer market their mini-bonds to ordinary retail investors. Furthermore, the forthcoming public offers and admission to trading regime will bring the issuance of non-transferable debt securities, such as minibonds, within the scope of regulation. That new regime will come into force in January 2026.
With respect to any discussions between the Government, regulators and the banking sector, Treasury Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the link below.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the banking sector and the Payment Systems Regulator on improving the ability of banks to identify and flag potentially suspicious payments linked to unauthorised investment schemes such as High Street Group; and whether she will make an assessment of the case for enhanced tracing and recovery arrangements in such cases.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the impact of the collapse of the High Street Group (HSG) on those who invested with it. The administrators of HSG estimate that the value of investments affected is about £123 million.
As the regulator of financial services in the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) stresses the importance of consumers getting the support they need and encourages consumers to only deal with FCA-authorised firms when making financial investments. HSG was not authorised by the FCA, and the issuing and distributing of its products was not a regulated activity. This means that investments made in HSG are not protected by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), unless the investment was via a regulated financial adviser or SIPP operator. As an important point of principle, the Government does not step in to pay compensation in respect of firms that fall outside of the FSCS. Doing so would create the wrong set of incentives for individuals and place an unnecessary burden on the taxpayer.
As HSG was not authorised by the FCA, and the issuing and distributing of its products is not a regulated activity, the FCA did not have supervisory oversight. The FCA does not have power to investigate a firm that is unauthorised and not carrying out any regulated activities and so the FCA's ability to intervene was limited. However, the promotion and marketing of such loan notes requires approval from FCA-authorised firms, unless a relevant exemption applies. The FCA has taken action against unauthorised promoters of HSG's investment scheme where financial promotions were made in breach of their rules. This action has included unannounced visits, warning letters and the removal of non-compliant financial promotions from the internet.
Action is being taken to reduce the risk of future investment schemes operating in this manner. The FCA has banned the mass marketing of speculative mini-bonds, which means firms with similar business models to HSG can no longer market their mini-bonds to ordinary retail investors. Furthermore, the forthcoming public offers and admission to trading regime will bring the issuance of non-transferable debt securities, such as minibonds, within the scope of regulation. That new regime will come into force in January 2026.
With respect to any discussions between the Government, regulators and the banking sector, Treasury Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the link below.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she will ask the Financial Conduct Authority and other relevant bodies to review their handling of intelligence and complaints relating to High Street Group and similar unauthorised mini-bond schemes; and to publish any lessons learned on consumer protection.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the impact of the collapse of the High Street Group (HSG) on those who invested with it. The administrators of HSG estimate that the value of investments affected is about £123 million.
As the regulator of financial services in the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) stresses the importance of consumers getting the support they need and encourages consumers to only deal with FCA-authorised firms when making financial investments. HSG was not authorised by the FCA, and the issuing and distributing of its products was not a regulated activity. This means that investments made in HSG are not protected by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), unless the investment was via a regulated financial adviser or SIPP operator. As an important point of principle, the Government does not step in to pay compensation in respect of firms that fall outside of the FSCS. Doing so would create the wrong set of incentives for individuals and place an unnecessary burden on the taxpayer.
As HSG was not authorised by the FCA, and the issuing and distributing of its products is not a regulated activity, the FCA did not have supervisory oversight. The FCA does not have power to investigate a firm that is unauthorised and not carrying out any regulated activities and so the FCA's ability to intervene was limited. However, the promotion and marketing of such loan notes requires approval from FCA-authorised firms, unless a relevant exemption applies. The FCA has taken action against unauthorised promoters of HSG's investment scheme where financial promotions were made in breach of their rules. This action has included unannounced visits, warning letters and the removal of non-compliant financial promotions from the internet.
Action is being taken to reduce the risk of future investment schemes operating in this manner. The FCA has banned the mass marketing of speculative mini-bonds, which means firms with similar business models to HSG can no longer market their mini-bonds to ordinary retail investors. Furthermore, the forthcoming public offers and admission to trading regime will bring the issuance of non-transferable debt securities, such as minibonds, within the scope of regulation. That new regime will come into force in January 2026.
With respect to any discussions between the Government, regulators and the banking sector, Treasury Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the link below.