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  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many ministerial visits the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster has made since 14 July 2016.

    Ben Gummer

    Further to the question asked by the Hon Member of 7 September 2016, Official Report, Column 321, I would add that my Rt Hon Friend, the Member for Derbyshire Dales, is a Minister of the Crown and a member of the Cabinet. He will attend a number of Cabinet Committees, which will be published in due course, and has duties directly related to the Duchy of Lancaster. The List of Ministerial Responsibilities will also be published in due course. He does not receive a Ministerial salary from public funds. Details of Private Office staff will be accounted for as part of the regular transparency data on gov.uk. The Government publishes on a quarterly basis details of Ministerial visits overseas. All Ministers have access to the Government Car Service for official travel.

    My Rt Hon Friend also serves as the Party Chairman of the Conservative Party. Such arrangements are no different from the likes of Charles Clarke, Ian McCartney and Hazel Blears, all of whom held the posts of Minister Without Portfolio and Labour Party Chair under the last Labour Government.

    I would also observe that under the Thatcher and Major Governments, senior figures such as Norman Tebbit, Kenneth Baker and Chris Patten served as both Chairman of the Conservative Party and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many officials in his Department have applied for career breaks in the last 12 months.

    Ben Gummer

    Records of applications for career breaks – approved and rejected – are not held centrally and would incur disproportionate costs to determine.

    I can confirm, however, that at 31st August 2016, 26 officials in my Department had commenced an approved career break in the last 12 months.

  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 5 September 2016 to Question 43473, when he plans to publish Ministerial responsibilities held by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

    Ben Gummer

    Further to the question asked by the Hon Member of 7 September 2016, Official Report, Column 321, I would add that my Rt Hon Friend, the Member for Derbyshire Dales, is a Minister of the Crown and a member of the Cabinet. He will attend a number of Cabinet Committees, which will be published in due course, and has duties directly related to the Duchy of Lancaster. The List of Ministerial Responsibilities will also be published in due course. He does not receive a Ministerial salary from public funds. Details of Private Office staff will be accounted for as part of the regular transparency data on gov.uk. The Government publishes on a quarterly basis details of Ministerial visits overseas. All Ministers have access to the Government Car Service for official travel.

    My Rt Hon Friend also serves as the Party Chairman of the Conservative Party. Such arrangements are no different from the likes of Charles Clarke, Ian McCartney and Hazel Blears, all of whom held the posts of Minister Without Portfolio and Labour Party Chair under the last Labour Government.

    I would also observe that under the Thatcher and Major Governments, senior figures such as Norman Tebbit, Kenneth Baker and Chris Patten served as both Chairman of the Conservative Party and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

  • Chris Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Green – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Green on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled, Chancellor steps up industry engagement, published on 7 September 2016, what plans he has to engage with the bio-tech and pharmaceutical industry as part of that industry engagement.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Treasury regularly engages with businesses from all sectors and values the opportunity to hear their views.

    Over the next month, the Chancellor will be meeting with over 80 representatives from businesses of all sizes, and from a wide variety of sectors and regions, including the bio-tech and pharmaceutical industry.

  • Natalie McGarry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Natalie McGarry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Natalie McGarry on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what work his Department has done to assess the potential effect of the soft drinks industry levy on levels of obesity in children and teenagers.

    Jane Ellison

    The Chief Medical Officer has said that reformulation and resizing are the key wins to tackle obesity.

    The Soft Drinks Industry Levy has been specifically designed to encourage companies to reduce the amount of added sugar in their products and move consumers towards healthier choices, by promoting low-sugar brands and introducing smaller portion sizes for high-sugary drinks.

    The government will monitor industry progress in reformulation over the coming years.

  • Natalie McGarry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Natalie McGarry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Natalie McGarry on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which reports commissioned by his Department from external bodies between 1 January 2015 and 31 August 2016 have not yet been published; when each report was commissioned for research; what the nature of the research commissioned was; from which external body or individual person the research was commissioned; what the value was of each such piece of research commissioned; on what date each report was received by his Department; for what reasons the research has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each report.

    Simon Kirby

    The Department does not hold this information centrally. The information requested can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he intends to publish legislation to create the National Infrastructure Commission as a statutory body.

    Mr David Gauke

    The National Infrastructure Commission has a crucial role to play in setting out the country’s infrastructure priorities and it has already made an important contribution through its first three reports.

    The Commission is an important part of the government’s overall approach on infrastructure, and we remain fully committed to it. We are considering how it can best support the government’s new industrial strategy.

  • Calum Kerr – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Calum Kerr – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Calum Kerr on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to change HM Revenue and Customs practice of not repaying incorrectly withheld arrears or underpaid tax credits to claimants as a lump sum.

    Jane Ellison

    To tackle the problems associated with families overestimating falls in income, since 2007, when claimants report a fall in income during the year, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) adjusts their tax credit payments for the rest of the year to reflect their new income level, but will not include a one-off payment for the earlier part of the year. At the end of the year, their award is finalised when their actual income is known. If they have been underpaid, a further payment will then be made. However, provisions are in place to make arrears payments to claimants suffering financial hardship.

    The purpose of withholding the payment is to reduce the number and size of any overpayments and prevent customers incurring debt.

    HMRC has provisions in place to support those customers who are suffering financial hardship and in those circumstances any withheld payments can be released and paid to the customer without having to wait for the claim to be finalised. There are no plans to alter the current practice.

  • Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Robinson on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to reduce any hardship associated with the target of 42 days to resolve appeals on child tax credit claims.

    Jane Ellison

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has a 42-day target to resolve Mandatory Reconsiderations, where customers challenge their tax credits award calculation. The average time taken to work Mandatory Reconsiderations can vary depending upon the complexity of the request, individual circumstances and the level of supporting evidence provided.

    When a customer requests a Mandatory Reconsideration HMRC suspends the recovery of any previous overpayment that is being collected from their current award, to minimise customer hardship during the reconsideration.

  • Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Robinson on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has conducted research on the effect of a suspension of child tax credit payments when a change in circumstance has been assumed.

    Jane Ellison

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) regularly carries out checks on tax credits awards, including Child Tax Credit, to reduce error and fraud. These checks identify potential risks with ongoing tax credits claims.

    Depending on the level of risk found, HMRC may ask customers for more information about their claim and circumstances, or a compliance team might undertake a full examination.

    In most cases, HMRC does not suspend the payment of tax credits payments during the check. It only does this where information held indicates that this is a reasonable step to prevent payments being made in error. In these cases, if a customer demonstrates that the claim is correct, HMRC reinstates payments immediately.

    In these circumstances, making further payments would therefore result in increased overpayments of tax credits overall which the customer would have to repay.

    HMRC has not carried out research into the specific aspect of the tax credits system related to suspension of Child Tax Credits.