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  • Carolyn Harris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Carolyn Harris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carolyn Harris on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make representations to the EU Commission on including bookmakers within the scope of the fourth money laundering directive.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive (“the Directive”) was formally adopted in June 2015, and will be transposed into national law by June 2017. The Directive extends the scope of the UK’s Money Laundering Regulations 2007 to cover all gambling providers.

    The Government can exempt providers of certain gambling services from the requirements laid down in the Directive on the basis of proven low risk posed by the nature and scale of operations. Any exemption will need to take account of a risk assessment that includes factors such as the degree of vulnerability of the transaction and the payment methods.

    We will be consulting on which sectors of the gambling sector can be proven to be low risk as part of the transposition process and we will be legislating accordingly. The Government plans to publish a consultation on the changes by the end of this year, and this will run for a full 12 weeks.

  • Carolyn Harris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Carolyn Harris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carolyn Harris on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of limiting (a) child tax credit and (b) the child element of universal credit on parents (i) in BME communities, (ii) who are considering fostering or adoption and (iii) who are the victims of domestic violence.

    Damian Hinds

    The government is committed to a fair tax and welfare system and wants to move from a low wage, high tax and high welfare economy to a higher wage, lower tax and lower welfare society. The intended impact of these reforms is to incentivise work and ensure work always pays.

    The government has fully assessed the impacts on equalities of the measures announced at Summer Budget, meeting our obligations as set out in the Public Sector Equality Duty.

  • Stephen Hammond – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stephen Hammond – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Hammond on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department has taken to prepare for the implementation of the proposed General Data Protection Regulation; which non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) and agencies overseen by his Department will be affected by that regulation; and what estimate he has made of the potential liability of his Department, its agencies and NDPBs in connection with that proposed regulation.

    Harriett Baldwin

    Negotiations on the proposed General Data Protection Regulation are still continuing and our negotiating position has taken into account the likely impact on Government Departments, NDPBs and agencies. Once the outcome of trilogue negotiations between the Council of the European Union, the European Parliament and the Commission are complete, and the Regulation has been adopted, the liabilities will be further assessed. There will then follow a maximum implementation period of two years. Between now and then, Government departments who will be affected by the Regulation are closely involved in work led by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport to consider the implications of the text as it develops through the negotiating process.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many companies in the care sector are being investigated by HM Revenue and Customs for alleged non-compliance with national minimum wage legislation.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) receives it. Anyone who feels they have been underpaid NMW should contact the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) review all complaints that are referred to them.

  • Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress has been made on the feasibility study into the Brighton Main Line 2 proposals announced as part of the Summer Budget 2015 on 8 July 2015.

    Greg Hands

    Last week, the government published the terms of reference of the London-South Coast Rail Corridor Study. This will consider the case for investment in existing and new capacity on this important corridor, including the feasibility of a second Brighton Main line, and will recommend priorities in the short, medium and long term.

  • Edward Argar – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Edward Argar – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Edward Argar on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans the Government has to review the amount of compensation for losses paid to Equitable Life policy holders over the course of this Parliament.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Chancellor announced in the Summer Budget 2015 that, as part of the Scheme closedown, the Government will double the payments to non With-Profits Annuity policyholders in receipt of Pension Credit. The Government has no further plans to review the payments made by the Equitable Life Payment Scheme.

  • Melanie Onn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Melanie Onn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Melanie Onn on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the homelessness prevention grant will continue to be paid to local authorities after the phasing out of the core local government grant.

    Greg Hands

    We want a radical reshaping of the relationship between central and local government, ending the merry go round of clawing back local taxes into Whitehall and handing them out again in the form of grants. We will do this by giving local government full retention of its Business Rates by 2020, meaning all income from local taxes will go towards funding local services. We will work closely with the sector over the coming weeks and months to ensure local people have more control over how their money is spent. This will mean looking at the grants that currently go from central government to local authorities, and the range of responsibilities central government asks local government to deliver. There will still be redistribution between councils so that councils don’t lose out just because their area starts from a weaker position. We will set out more detail at the Spending Review.

  • Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the proportion of people in receipt of tax credits who will have their income reduced as a result of the proposed government changes to tax credits.

    Damian Hinds

    The government set out its assessment of the impacts of the Summer Budget policies in the Welfare Reform and Work Bill on 20th July 2015. Taken together, the introduction of the National Living Wage, increases in the personal allowance and welfare changes mean that 8 out of 10 working households will be better off as a result of the Summer Budget.

    The Summer Budget offered a new deal for working people. It means Britain moving from a high welfare, high tax, low wage economy to a lower welfare, lower tax, higher wage society.

    A new National Living Wage for workers aged 25 and above, initially set at £7.20 per hour from April 2016, will directly benefit 2.7 million low wage workers, and up to 6 million could see a pay rise as a result of a ripple effect up the earnings distribution. The new National Living Wage will boost pay for those currently earning the National Minimum Wage by £4,800 a year by 2020 when the National Living Wage is expected to rise to over £9 per hour.

    To help working families keep more of what they earn, the personal allowance will increase to £11,000 in 2016-17 and £11,200 in 2017-18. The government has committed to increase the personal allowance to £12,500 by 2020 which will mean that a typical basic rate taxpayer will see their income tax cut by £1,205 a year compared to 2010.

  • Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of the slowing of the growth of the Chinese economy on growth in the UK.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Treasury continuously monitors global economic developments, including those in China, and their impact on the UK as part of the normal process of policy development.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he expects HM Revenue and Customs to report on its investigations into alleged non-compliance by care sector companies with national minimum wage legislation.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) receives it. Anyone who feels they have been underpaid NMW should contact the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) review all complaints that are referred to them. Care sector complaints are a priority area and are fast-tracked for investigation.

    HMRC have published an extensive evaluation of NMW enforcement in the social care sector over the period 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2013; there are no plans to publish an additional report on this sector at present:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-minimum-wage-compliance-in-the-social-care-sector

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