Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to use the Consumer Prices Index in preference to RPI as a measurement in all government transactions, negotiations and agreements.

The problems with RPI are well known. The Government has made progress in moving away from the use of RPI, for instance through bringing forward the planned switch in indexation of business rates from RPI to CPI by two years to April 2018.

However, any further decisions to stop using RPI must also consider the fiscal costs associated. The Government has committed to reviewing the use of RPI for indirect taxes once its fiscal consolidation plans are complete.