The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-02-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many enquiries regarding self-assessment originating from each constituency were handled by HM Revenue and Customs call centres in each of the last three tax years.
Mr David Gauke
HM Revenue and Customs does not hold data by constituency and regularly publishes general performance reports at Gov.uk.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hollern on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects the formal internal scrutiny process for the current calculations for optimism bias for the Successor submarine programme to be completed.
Mr Philip Dunne
Optimism Bias work will be completed as part of the evidence required to inform the next investment decision.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2016-03-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the number of non-EU citizens who face being deported after 6 April because they earn less than £35,000.
Lord Keen of Elie
No migrant workers will be deported from April 2016 as a result of the £35,000 settlement threshold.
The threshold only applies to those who entered Tier 2 (General), the skilled work route, from 6 April 2011. Tier 2 workers sponsored in shortage or PhD-level occupations are exempt. Skilled workers may remain in Tier 2 (General) for up to six years in total, after which they are expected to meet the settlement criteria or leave. For those who entered in April 2011, the six year maximum period of stay will expire in April 2017.
Those who are paid below the threshold may apply to switch into any other routes for which they are eligible. Those workers who cannot extend their stay will be expected to leave the UK voluntarily when their visa expires. The Home Office published a full impact assessment on the changes to Tier 2 settlement rules when they were laid before Parliament on 15 March 2012. This is available on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/117957/impact-assessment-tier2.pdf.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-04-28.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 19 April 2016 to Question 33455, how many people are employed to investigate tax evasion in HM Revenue and Customs’ (a) affluent unit and (b) high net worth unit.
Mr David Gauke
HM Revenue and Custom’s 26,000 (full-time equivalent employees) strong enforcement and compliance workforce of risk and intelligence analysts, compliance officers and fraud investigators tackle the full range of compliance risks ranging from hidden economy to the wealthy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-06-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether a dedicated hotline for postgraduate loan applicants will be established by the Student Loans Company.
Joseph Johnson
There is a dedicated enquiry line for applicants for the new master’s loan for postgraduate study. The number is 0300 100 0031 and the line is open Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much was spent by his Department on private school fees for children whose parents are stationed (a) in the UK and (b) overseas in the last financial year.
Mark Lancaster
Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) was reviewed as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2010. Since then, our reforms have reduced costs by around £30 million per annum along with an associated reduction in claimants. Work continues to further reduce the cost of the allowance, whilst ensuring funding goes to those who really need it, with the latest governance changes taking effect on 1 September 2016.
The requested information is provided in the following table.
Continuity of Education Allowance, Number of Claimants and Cost (UK and Overseas) by Financial Year (FY)
|
FY 2015-16 |
|
|
UK Claimants |
3,040 |
|
Overseas Claimants |
630 |
|
Total Claimants |
3,670 |
|
UK Cost (£ million) |
67 |
|
Overseas Cost (£ million) |
13.8 |
|
Total Cost (£ million) |
80.8 |
Note: all numbers are rounded
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-10-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many local authorities have offered reduced business rates to private nurseries since the Minister for Childcare’s speech at the launch of the NDNA’s Annual Nursery Survey in January 2015.
Caroline Dinenage
The Government does not collect data on particular types of premises that might have benefited from local discretionary relief.
Central Government has given local authorities wide-ranging, discretionary powers to grant business rates discounts as they see fit – they are best placed to serve the needs of their community. All local authorities which grant a local discount will receive 50% of the cost from central Government funds.
The Minister for Childcare wrote to all local authorities in November 2014 to encourage them to apply business rates relief to nurseries and reminded them that central Government will meet 50% of the costs involved. He also encouraged nurseries to follow up with their local authorities themselves. The Department for Communities and Local Government wrote to local authorities in January 2015, reinforcing this message. This letter is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/395333/BRIL_1__-_2015__-__General_-_14_Jan.pdf
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2016-01-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to offer any deadline extensions for tax due by businesses in all areas affected by flooding.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) operates a dedicated Severe Weather helpline to offer help and advice on any tax matters to those people and businesses affected by the recent flooding. The helpline is 0800 904 7900Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 8.00 am to 8.00 pm; Saturday and Sunday, 8.00 am to 4.00 pm, excluding bank holidays.
In cases of severe flooding, HMRC will also:
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steven Paterson on 2016-02-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) small and medium-sized enterprises and (b) other businesses have signed up to the Cyber Essentials Scheme.
Mr Edward Vaizey
At the end of January 2016, 1,674 Cyber essentials and Cyber essentials Plus certificates have been issued, of which 80% were awarded to micro, small and medium-sized businesses.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that the supply of newly-qualified teachers is not affected by imbalances in the distribution of teacher training places at a sub-regional level.
Nick Gibb
The Department for Education has changed the approach to initial teacher training (ITT) allocations for the 2016 to 2017 academic year. The National College for Teaching and Leadership are not allocating a specific number of places to individual organisations for postgraduate ITT courses due to start in the 2016 to 2017 academic year. Instead, eligible schools, school-centred initial teacher training providers (SCITTs) and higher education institutions (HEIs) will be able to recruit as many trainees as they feel they need (subject to a limited number of controls), until the overall system has recruited a sufficient number.
As School Direct and SCITT partnerships cover large geographical areas, we are monitoring recruitment at a regional level only. To date, the only challenge in geographical distribution of ITT places has been found in the London region in recruitment to primary, which was recruiting slower than other regions. In this case we have allowed school led routes (i.e. School Direct (tuition fee) and SCITTs) in this region to continue to recruit to primary courses to ensure that enough trainees are recruited.
We are prepared to use reserve recruitment controls in other subjects, or for other regions as required.