Tag: Julian Knight

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-01-20.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the Government’s tax reliefs on (a) the film and (b) other creative industries.

Mr David Gauke

Creative sector tax reliefs play an important role in stimulating investment in an industry that employs 1.8 million people and provides world-class cultural experiences to many more.

HM Revenue and Customs published official statistics in December 2015 showing that a record 220 films claimed the film tax credit in 2014-15, with the relief supporting over £1bn worth of UK expenditure in the sector.

Since the reliefs came into force in 2013-14, the high-end TV tax relief has supported almost £600m of expenditure in the industry and the animation tax relief has supported £68 million. Official statistics for the creative sector tax reliefs can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/creative-industries-statistics-december-2015

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-03-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many legacy continuing health care cases are more than two years old and have payments outstanding (a) in England, (b) in the West Midlands and (c) at Birmingham Cross City Clinical Commissioning Group.

Alistair Burt

At the end of March 2013, the National Health Service had received approximately 59,000 requests to assess previously unassessed periods of care for NHS Continuing Healthcare eligibility.

NHS England collects information on the number of these cases which are awaiting a decision on eligibility.

As at 31 January 2016:

(a) There were 15,716 requests to assess previously unassessed periods of care in England;

(b) there were 848 requests to assess previously unassessed periods of care in the West Midlands; and

(c) there were 260 requests to assess previously unassessed periods of care in Birmingham Cross City Clinical Commissioning Group.

It is not possible to assess how many of these individuals may be entitled to redress payments until a full assessment of eligibility for NHS Continuing Healthcare is undertaken, in line with the principles and processes set out in the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care (November 2012) (revised).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-05-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effects on auto enrolment of the roll-out of the lifetime ISA.

Justin Tomlinson

Automatic enrolment is the cornerstone of this Government’s private pension reforms, normalising pension saving and reversing the decade long decline in pension savings prior to introduction in 2012. It has been a great success to date with over 6 million people enrolled and opt-outs low at around 10 per cent.

The Lifetime ISA is not a part of the pension system but an additional flexible savings product that can complement pension saving but not replace it. Increasing the choice of savings products available, it aims to support the Government’s ambition to encourage a regular savings habit amongst young people and to create a culture of medium and long term saving at different points in people’s lives.

The Budget 2016 Lifetime ISA costing, certified by the OBR, did not anticipate any revenue impact from individuals opting-out of their workplace pensions in order to save into Lifetime ISAs.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-06-14.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether any successor organisations to the Money Advice Service will have a remit to promote financial capability amongst the public.

Harriett Baldwin

The government is committed to improving financial capability among the public and recognises that increased financial capability for consumers will lead to better outcomes for both individuals and the wider economy. Helping hard-working people achieve their aspirations at every stage of their lives is at the heart of our long term plan. That is why we launched the Public Financial Guidance consultation in Budget 2016 to seek input on what role the government should play in promoting financial capability, and how the public provision of free-to-client, impartial financial guidance should be structured to give consumers the information they need to make financial decisions. The consultation closed on 8 June. The government is currently considering the responses and will respond in the Autumn. The government recognises the importance of giving young people the skills they need to make financial decisions, which is why financial education has been on the national secondary school curriculum in England since September 2014.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-10-19.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans the Government has to assist people who are locked into inappropriate and poorly-paying annuity contracts.

Simon Kirby

The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) thematic review of non-advised annuity sales practices looked at past sales practices, and found failings in a small number of firms, particularly in respect of the information they provide to customers about enhanced annuities (where customers may be entitled to an enhanced rate because of a health condition or lifestyle factor).

The FCA have announced their next steps, including investigation by the FCA’s Enforcement Division to determine whether further action is necessary. These firms are now being asked by the FCA to review all non-advised sales from July 2008 and, where appropriate, provide redress.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department has taken to ensure the maximum level of engagement by children and young people with the commemoration of the First World War.

David Evennett

DCMS is working with other Government Departments and our delivery partners to ensure that people of all ages can take part in commemorations of the First World War and remember those who sacrificed so much. As part of the FWW centenary commemorations, the government is providing the opportunity for two pupils and one teacher from every state-funded secondary school in England to visit the FWW battlefields on the Western Front. In 2015, 1,140 Schools and 3,489 pupils and teachers visited FWW battlefields on the Western Front. Since July 2014, 54,702 children and young people visited the Imperial War Museums First World War Galleries as part of a school visit. Over 21,400 people from the UK and overseas wrote a letter for the ‘Letter to an Unknown Soldier’ project, engaging over 500 primary and secondary schools across the UK. On 4 August 2014, 1.4 million 16-24 year olds participated in LIGHTS OUT – an initiative to light a candle in remembrance. As well as the official commemoration programme schools across the UK are organising their own individual events and projects to remember those who took part in the First World War in battle and on the home front.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-03-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting time was for transition of patients from child to adult mental health services in (a) England and (b) the West Midlands in each of the last three years.

Alistair Burt

This information is not centrally available.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-05-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to extend the Pensions Wise service to people (a) between 20 and 40 and (b) between 40 and 50; and if he will make that service available to advise people on whether to invest in a lifetime ISA or under auto enrolment.

Justin Tomlinson

Pension Wise provides free and impartial guidance to those aged 50 and over with a defined contribution pension to help them understand their options.

It was announced at the 2015 summer budget that the age for eligibility would be lowered to 50. Pension Wise has developed new content for 50 – 54 year olds to make the guidance appointments more relevant to their needs and this is now live.

The government plans to restructure the delivery of public financial guidance to ensure that all consumers can access the help they need when they need it.

Pension Wise does not give specific advice on products or provider recommendations. There are currently no plans for Pension Wise to provide guidance on lifetime ISAs or Automatic Enrolment.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on what date the Financial Conduct Authority review on the disclosure of transaction cost information for workplace pension schemes is planned to be published.

Justin Tomlinson

The Government and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) remain committed to ensuring that members of pension schemes are able to obtain information about the costs and charges which they bear.

Governance bodies of defined contribution workplace pension schemes are obliged, under existing requirements, to assess transaction costs. The FCA is actively considering how to achieve greater transparency and standardisation of these costs, and plans to publish a consultation later this year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-10-19.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what research his Department has carried out into the potential for widening of the secondary annuity market.

Simon Kirby

At March Budget 2015 the government announced proposals to remove the current restrictions on selling existing annuities, and to create the conditions for a secondary market in annuities to develop. The intention was that pensioners would be able to sell the income they receive from their annuity in return for a lump sum.

The government undertook extensive consultation with industry and consumer groups to understand the conditions that would be necessary for there to be a vibrant market and to achieve good outcomes for consumers. However, it became increasingly clear that creating the conditions to allow a competitive market to emerge could not be balanced with sufficient consumer protections.

It also became clear that there would be insufficient purchasers to create a competitive market. This means there was a high risk of significant consumer detriment as consumers would be likely to get poor value for their annuity income streams and incur high costs for selling. Furthermore, the steps that the government would have needed to take to create purchasing demand in the market would have undermined important consumer protections.

In these circumstances the government concluded that it would not be in consumers’ interests to continue with this policy.