Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing the rate of Video Games Expenditure Credits for bigger budget games to 39% and removing the 80% expenditure cap.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the importance of the video games sector and the contribution it makes to growth. Support for video games companies is provided through the tax system and through funding.
Video Games Expenditure Credit (VGEC) provides a generous rate of relief of 34% on qualifying UK video games development costs. In 2023-24, £327 million of Corporation Tax was relieved through video game tax relief. VGEC is available to any company and project that meet the qualifying criteria, including larger budget games.
The Government is not currently considering increasing the generosity of the relief.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the road haulage sector on the financial impact of [i] forthcoming changes to fuel duty and [ii] changes in oil prices due to the conflict in the Middle East on road hauliers.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the key role the haulage sector plays in the UK economy. The Government is taking action to ensure that fuel at the pump remains affordable. At Budget 2025, the Government extended the 5p-per-litre cut for a further five months, until the end of August this year. The Government has also cancelled the increase in line with inflation for 2026/27; instead, rates will only gradually return to early 2022 levels by March 2027.
The Government's action on fuel duty will save an average heavy goods vehicle more than £800 in 2026/27 compared to previous plans, and follows an extended period where freezes to fuel duty have resulted in substantial savings for the haulage industry.
As the Chancellor has set out, a rapid de-escalation in the Middle East remains the best way to keep prices low at the pump.
As with all taxes, the Government keeps fuel duty under review; and any changes are announced at fiscal events.
Asked by: Harriet Cross (Conservative - Gordon and Buchan)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much public money has been spent to date on the development and roll-out of Making Tax Digital; and what the projected total cost is for completing the programme.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Originally announced at Budget 2015, Making Tax Digital (MTD) supports UK businesses to transact digitally. It encourages timely and accurate record keeping, reducing the part of the tax gap caused by taxpayer error and failure to take reasonable care.
The most recent Accounting Officer’s Assessment was published on 4 June 2025 and estimated a public sector lifecycle cost of £1.4 billion for the MTD programme. This assessment also estimated an overall lifecycle monetised benefit of £6.2 billion. These are considerable benefits, providing vital funding for public services, which are expected to continue beyond the 5-year window assessed in the business case.
MTD will also generate significant non-monetisable benefits, including through modernising HMRC’s critical national IT infrastructure for the VAT and ITSA regimes.
Asked by: Rachel Gilmour (Liberal Democrat - Tiverton and Minehead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate her Department has made of the costs of expanding the rural fuel duty relief scheme to cover all of Tiverton and Minehead constituency.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Rural Fuel Duty Relief Scheme has provided a 5p reduction to motorists buying fuel in certain areas since its introduction in 2012. The areas included in the scheme demonstrate certain characteristics such as: pump prices much higher than the UK average; remoteness leading to high fuel transport costs from refinery to filling station, and; relatively low sales meaning that retailers cannot benefit from bulk discounts.
There are no plans to amend the list of eligible locations.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) business rates and (b) other property-based business taxation on town centres and high streets.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street. That is why, from April, the Government will introduce new permanently lower multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new multipliers are worth nearly £1 billion per year and will benefit over 750,000 properties, including those in town centres and on the high street.
The new RHL multipliers replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since the pandemic. Unlike RHL relief, the new multipliers are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit.
In addition, at the Budget, the Government announced a support package worth £4.3 billion to help protect ratepayers seeing large bills increases as a result of the 2026 revaluation.
On top of this, pubs and live music venues will benefit from 15% off their new business rates bills from April, ahead of their bills being frozen for two years in real terms.
Asked by: David Simmonds (Conservative - Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to Answer of 10 February 2026 to Question 109627 on Music Venues and Public Houses: Business Rates, if she will publish information on pubs and live music venues relief.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
In 2026/27, all pubs and live music venues will benefit from 15% relief on their new business rates bills on top of the support announced at the Budget. Their bills will then be frozen in real terms for two years from April 2027.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to WPQ 112096 answered on 23 February 2026 about 'VAT Fraud,' what recent discussions he has had with HMRC about trends in the levels of cases of organised criminals accessing VAT accounts using customers' registration details and claiming VAT refunds.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC has active investigations into organised crime VAT fraud. However, live case information isn’t routinely published, and disclosing the number of ongoing investigations would risk alerting or enabling those seeking to exploit the tax system.
Further to answer UIN 112096, HMRC have implemented additional controls over recent months to strengthen its systems and ensure access is limited to legitimate customers. As part of this, HMRC has established the Fraud Prevention Centre (FPC), a multi-functional team led by HMRC's Security directorate, focused on the protection, detection and response to identity-related security threats. The FPC also provides enhanced, direct support to customers and manages fraud in line with industry best practice.
HMRC has wide ranging criminal investigation powers, as set out on GOV.UK, and is resourced to investigate serious fraud, deploying compliance and enforcement capability to protect the integrity of the tax system. At Spring Statement 2025, the Government set out plans to expand HMRC's counter-fraud capability, including strengthening its response to organised criminal attacks.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 23 February 2026 to Question 112096 on VAT Fraud, how many cases are being investigated by HMRC of organised criminals accessing VAT accounts using genuine customers' registration details and claiming VAT refunds.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC has active investigations into organised crime VAT fraud. However, live case information isn’t routinely published, and disclosing the number of ongoing investigations would risk alerting or enabling those seeking to exploit the tax system.
Further to answer UIN 112096, HMRC have implemented additional controls over recent months to strengthen its systems and ensure access is limited to legitimate customers. As part of this, HMRC has established the Fraud Prevention Centre (FPC), a multi-functional team led by HMRC's Security directorate, focused on the protection, detection and response to identity-related security threats. The FPC also provides enhanced, direct support to customers and manages fraud in line with industry best practice.
HMRC has wide ranging criminal investigation powers, as set out on GOV.UK, and is resourced to investigate serious fraud, deploying compliance and enforcement capability to protect the integrity of the tax system. At Spring Statement 2025, the Government set out plans to expand HMRC's counter-fraud capability, including strengthening its response to organised criminal attacks.
Asked by: Euan Stainbank (Labour - Falkirk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the inclusion of refined products in the carbon border adjustment mechanism on national security.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recognises the role that refineries play in energy security and the UK’s industrial base. The Government published a call for evidence (https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/future-of-the-uk-downstream-oil-sector/future-of-the-uk-downstream-oil-sector-call-for-evidence) on the future of the fuel sector on 23rd February 2026 in order to help understand the current state of the refining sector.
Following a strategic and technical assessment by HMG, it has been decided not to expand the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to refined oil products in January 2028. Assessing the case for and feasibility of including refined oil products within the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism at a later date is a priority. We are continuing to work with the sector to assess the options.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what engagement her Department has had with (a) the British Ports Association, (b) individual port operators and (c) river and canal authorities regarding the proposal to remove landfill tax exemptions relevant to dredging and port maintenance.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the vital role that the ports sector plays in supporting the government’s objectives on transport and infrastructure. At the Budget, the Government announced it would legislate to remove the Landfill Tax exemption for stabilisers used in dredged material from April 2027.
This decision followed a consultation on reforms to Landfill Tax during which the government engaged with a range of stakeholders from key sectors. This decision will not prevent the use of stabilisers, but it will encourage businesses to limit their use to what is necessary.
The Government does not expect the change to have a significant impact on flood risk management as most material removed during routine waterway maintenance of rivers and canals is reused locally and deposited adjacent to the channel, avoiding the need for disposal at landfill sites.