Tag: Lord Taylor of Warwick

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-12-07.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps are being taken to support self-employed people who are confused over their tax status or struggle to understand the tax system.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) provides business with detailed guidance and an online Employment Status Indicator to check whether they are employed or self-employed for tax, National Insurance or VAT purposes. This is available on the gov.uk website.

HMRC is working with stakeholders to improve the online tool. Customers needing further support can call the Helpline on 03001232326.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-03-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support local government in the light of their planned extension of business rate relief.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

These tax cuts provide significant support to local businesses. The Small Business Rate Relief measure announced at the Budget will mean 600,000 of the smallest businesses will not have to pay business rates.

Local authorities will be compensated in full for their loss of income as a result of these changes.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-03-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to help more businesses in Cambridge in the light of reports that it has the best rates for startup survival.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

Government’s Start-Up Loans scheme supports people wanting to start a business and has provided over 35,000 loans worth over £200 million. We’re committed to supporting start-ups by cutting taxes on small businesses, extending rate relief and increasing the Employment Allowance.

In Cambridge, Government has invested £4.8m in the establishment of the Sir John Bradfield Technology Centre to support business incubation on Cambridge Science Park. This is in addition to a range of other growth-enabling investments made through the £500m Greater Cambridge City Deal, the £109.1m Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Growth Deal and a three year funding package to support development of a local business Growth Hub

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-04-26.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the UK, along with the other countries that have committed to the Sustainable Development Goals, delivers clean water for all by 2030.

Baroness Verma

In the UK Aid Strategy published in November 2015, we committed to help 60 million people get access to clean water and sanitation in support of goal 6 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

We will achieve this target through projects managed by our Country Offices, the Department for International Development offices based in the UK and through our contributions to multilateral organisations such as the World Bank. We will continue to invest in country and regional programmes to improve water resources management, water efficiency and improve water quality.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-07-07.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the outcome of the referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU, what steps they are taking to reassure young pupils from European backgrounds who fear that they may be forced to leave the UK.

Lord Nash

As a matter of principle all children resident in the UK receive a free state-school education. We want to reassure European citizens living in the UK that there will be no immediate changes in their circumstances.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-10-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to tighten cyber security, in the light of the breach at Yahoo.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen

Cyber security is recognised by the Government as a Tier One national security threat alongside deterring state-based threats and terrorism. In response to that threat and recognising the United Kingdom’s position as one of the most digitally advanced economies in the world, the Government is publishing its new five year National Cyber Security Strategy (NCSS) later this year.

The National Cyber Security Strategy defines the government’s vision and ambition for the future: a UK that is secure and resilient to cyber threats and sets out a comprehensive plan to better protect the UK from those threats. The new strategy includes delivering a new National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), to take the lead in our ambitious plans to improve UK cyber security and involves creating a programme of active cyber defence which will have the ability to counter-attack in cyber space.

To fund the strategy, the Government announced that it has set aside £1.9bn of investment in cyber including a new National Cyber Security Programme (NCSP).

The Government has also put in place a wide range of cyber security guidance and support for businesses. This includes:

• free advice and online training on the gov.uk website;
• the ‘Cyber Essentials’ scheme, which shows all businesses how to protect against common Internet threats;
• the ‘10 Steps to Cyber Security guidance’, which shows large organisations how to manage cyber risk strategically;
• a cross-government National Cyber Security Programme funded campaign aimed at significantly improving the online safety, behaviour and confidence of consumers and small businesses;
• specialist advice and support for critical national infrastructure.

Industry must also act by ensuring staff have the right training, skills and tools to operate safely online.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-10-28.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to support more programmes or competitions for university students and recent graduates to encourage them to embrace entrepreneurship.

Baroness Evans of Bowes Park

This Government fully supports the promotion of entrepreneurship in higher education. In 2013/14, the Higher Education – Business and Community Interaction survey found that there were over 4,600 new graduate start-ups, up from 2,357 in 2009/10.

The Government is championing closer collaboration between universities and business through the National Centre for Universities and Business which is supported by HEFCE, the Research Councils and Innovate UK. Higher Education Innovation Funding, delivered by HEFCE, also supports university collaboration with industry, the commercialisation of research, and promotes entrepreneurship, enterprise education and broader knowledge exchange.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-11-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the claim by telecoms company Ericsson that the UK is lagging behind other countries in rolling out 5G networks, despite the opening of the 5G Innovation Centre at University of Surrey to improve mobile networks.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

The Government is committed to ensuring that Britain seizes the chance to be a world leader in 5G technology, which it supports through research and innovation; building on areas of UK excellence; and creating the right regulatory framework.

The Surrey University 5G Innovation Centre is already acquiring an international reputation as one of the top three centres for 5G research globally. It is not alone – other UK universities including Bristol, Southampton, Lancaster, Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt and Sheffield are also conducting world-leading research in areas that are vital for the implementation of 5G.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-12-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the likely impact of the apprenticeship levy on wage growth over the next five years.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

The OBR forecasts that wages will grow over the next few years, though at a slightly lower rate than would have been the case had the apprenticeship levy not been introduced.

However, we know that apprenticeships have long-run productivity and wage benefits for apprentices and the wider economy, which are not included in the OBR’s modelling. On average, an apprenticeship increases an individual’s earnings by 11-16% within three to five years.[1]

The medium-term benefits of apprenticeships can therefore outweigh short-term wage pressures. We thus consider the net impact of the apprenticeships levy on the economy to be positive.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-education-measuring-the-net-present-value-in-england

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-01-27.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to BT regarding the case for selling Openreach.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

This is a matter for the independent telecoms regulator, Ofcom, who is currently reviewing the markets for digital communications in the UK and is due to report at the end of this month. Government has made no representations.