Tag: Phil Boswell

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2015-12-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies on social mobility of the findings of research by the Resolution Foundation, set out in its report, The Pinch, published in December 2015, on differences in household wealth between generations; and what steps the Government plans to take to address such differences.

Nick Boles

I note the Resolution Foundation’s work published in December 2015.

This Government is focussed on securing economic prosperity, providing the foundations to support opportunity for all.

Through improved education, work chances, a fairer welfare system and a stronger economy we are aiming to help increase the standard of living for everyone in the UK.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-01-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the implications for his polices of the conclusion of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report, entitled Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion 2015, that the proportion of families in the bottom fifth of income distribution with no savings rose to 69 per cent over the last 10 years partly due to the rising cost of living

Priti Patel

The Department carefully considers all relevant publications.

The Prime Minister recently announced that the Government is bringing forward a ‘help to save’ scheme to encourage those on low incomes to build up a rainy day fund. The Government has also taken significant steps to support the credit union movement to help people to save and access responsible credit.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-02-05.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how often his Department publishes details of special advisers and their pay grades during a Parliament.

Matthew Hancock

Annually.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-04-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding for core regulatory activities within the Health and Safety Executive in the next three years.

Justin Tomlinson

HSE, like many other public bodies, will deliver further budgetary savings over the next three years. HSE has set out in its 2016/17 Business Plan its priorities and key deliverables up to April 2017, including its commitment to securing effective management and control of risk in GB workplaces. For the longer term it has a financial strategy to deliver the required savings whilst seeking to maintain current levels of its core regulatory activities and sustaining regulatory excellence.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-10-13.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the amount of money lost by UK investors as a result of Providence Bonds and Providence Bonds II being placed in administration in September 2016.

Simon Kirby

The government does not hold this information.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2015-12-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the implications are for his Department’s policy of the analysis undertaken by the Resolution Foundation set out in its report, The Pinch, published on 10 December 2015, of (a) the effects of the financial events of the last 10 years on those aged 16 to 44 relative to those aged 55 to 64 and (b) the changes in that period in levels of real median weekly earnings across different cohorts of the population.

Nick Boles

The financial crisis triggered the worst recession in living memory. However, GDP surpassed its pre-recession level in Q2 2013 and the UK’s economic recovery is now well established. Since 2010, on average, the UK has been the joint fastest growing economy in the G7 and the labour market has continued to make strong progress.

According to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), excluding full-time students under the age of 25, the employment rate of people aged 16-49 fell from 76.9% in the three months to May 2008 to a post-recession low of 74.0% in the three months to March 2010. Since mid-2011, the employment rate for this group has increased over time and the latest data shows that it reached a record high of 77.7% in the three months to October 2015.

While the recession had less of an impact on the employment rate of people aged 50-64, their current employment has also reached a record high for this group, of 70.0%.

The analysis in Resolution Foundation’s report you mention looked at real median weekly earnings of various cohorts over time. While not strictly cohort analysis, more recent cross-sectional data from the ONS’s Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) shows that the increase in nominal median gross weekly pay between April 2014 and April 2015 varied across age groups as follows[1]:

• 16-17 year olds: 8.2%[2]
• 18-21 year olds: 4.0%
• 22-29 year olds: 3.2%
• 30-39 year olds: 1.1%
• 40-49 year olds: 2.6%
• 50-59 year olds: 2.5%
• 60+ year olds: 1.9%

CPI inflation over the same period was -0.1% in the year to April 2015.

Pay, and ultimately living standards are strongly linked to productivity. That is why the Government is working hard to boost productivity, and therefore wages, with the ambitious measures outlined in our Productivity Plan. Our higher pay, lower tax, lower welfare society is the route to raising living standards for everyone in the UK.

[1] Employees on adult rates of pay whose pay for the survey period was not affected by absence

[2] Figures for 16-17 year olds include employees not on adult rates of pay

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-01-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the implications for his polices of the conclusion of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report, entitled Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion 2015, that people in the bottom fifth of income distribution saw their living costs increase faster than average because they spent more money on essential goods.

Priti Patel

The Department carefully considers all relevant publications.

We know that work is the best route out of poverty and that is why we are reforming welfare and cutting taxes to make sure work always pays and people get to keep more of what they earn. The annual average income of the poorest fifth of households has risen in real terms, compared to 2007/08. Looking forward, working families can expect to see their earnings increase, with average earnings growth expected to reach around 4% a year by 2020, while the current OBR forecast is for inflation to remain relatively low over the next two years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-02-19.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with which financial institutions on the energy exposure of such institutions in response to the falling price of oil.

Harriett Baldwin

The Chancellor set out the government’s view on the challenges facing the UK economy in a speech on 7 January. The transcript of the speech is available from www.gov.uk/government/speeches/chancellor-on-challenges-facing-uk-economy-in-2016. The Chancellor and other Ministers meet regularly with regulators and the Bank of England. In addition, the Bank of England’s Financial Stability Report sets out an analysis, which can be found here:

http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Pages/fsr/2015/dec.aspx

The Financial Policy Committee’s (FPC) stress test results in December 2015 suggest that the major UK banks would be resilient to a sustained commodity price downturn.

The UK now has a robust system of financial regulation, where the regulators have clear objectives and powers to deal with risks to the financial sector. The Government established the FPC to identify, monitor and address systemic risks to financial stability.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-04-22.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the (a) Prudential Regulation Authority and (b) Financial Conduct Authority on collateralised loan obligations containing high-yield energy debt and the default rate of companies in the oil and gas sector on high-yield loans.

Harriett Baldwin

Treasury Ministers and officials meet regularly with the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority to discuss relevant regulatory issues.

As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Treasury’s practice to provide details of all such discussions.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-10-13.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what communication has taken place between the UK Financial Ombudsman Service, the Bank of England and the Channel Islands Financial Ombudsman in relation to protection for investors in Providence Bonds and Providence Bonds II.

Simon Kirby

The government is unable to comment on the communications of external bodies.