Asked by: Matt Hancock (Independent - West Suffolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much funding the Financial Conduct Authority provided to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-23 financial year.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
These are matters for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which are operationally independent from Government. The FCA and the PSR will respond to the Honourable Member by letter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.
Asked by: Matt Hancock (Independent - West Suffolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Payment Systems Regulator staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
These are matters for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which are operationally independent from Government. The FCA and the PSR will respond to the Honourable Member by letter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.
Asked by: Matt Hancock (Independent - West Suffolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Financial Conduct Authority staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
These are matters for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which are operationally independent from Government. The FCA and the PSR will respond to the Honourable Member by letter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of changing the terms of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme to (a) protect savers when (i) banks and (ii) building societies merge and (b) increase the level of protection for accounts that originated under separate banking licences.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) carries out its deposit protection function within rules set by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). Under PRA rules, customer deposits held by authorised banks, building societies and credit unions in UK establishments are protected by the FSCS up to £85,000 per person, per banking licence. Under PRA rules, if there is a merger, the relevant firm must normally inform depositors at least one month before it takes effect. They must then give depositors three months to withdraw or transfer any deposit balances above the FSCS compensation limit without incurring penalties.
The PRA is required to review the deposit protection limit every five years, with the next review due to occur by 2025.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what criteria the Financial Conduct Authority uses to decide what markets to (a) monitor and (b) intervene in.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 establishes the framework for financial services regulation. It provides for the Treasury and Parliament, through legislation, to determine which activities, products and markets are regulated and fall within the remit of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 also gives the FCA a set of statutory objectives and the appropriate regulatory tools and powers to pursue those objectives.
The question of how the FCA monitors and intervenes in the markets it regulates, in order to fulfil its statutory functions, is a matter for the FCA, which is operationally independent from Government. The FCA will respond to the Honourable Member by letter on this matter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether Fairer Finance and Dignity raised issues regarding Safe Hands Funeral Plans in meetings with his Department in (a) 2017 and (b) 2018.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
During a wide-ranging meeting with industry in July 2017 to discuss pre-paid funeral plans, some concerns about Safe Hands funeral plans were raised with HM Treasury.
In response, officials advised that such concerns should be reported to the FCA, reflecting the fact that HM Treasury has no investigatory or enforcement powers of its own.
Asked by: Matt Hancock (Independent - West Suffolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many Financial Conduct Authority employees were seconded to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-2023 financial year.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
These are matters for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which are operationally independent from Government. The FCA and the PSR will respond to the Honourable Member by letter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20433, (a) how many such consignments have been declared and (b) whether HMRC has taken such enforcement action since 21 July 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The indirect supply prohibition, concerning Russian Origin imports of Oil and Oil products came into force on 05 December 2022.
HMRC publishes UK trade data on the www.uktradeinfo.com website.
HM Revenue and Customs does not comment on operational enforcement matters pertaining to specific import or export scenarios.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Breathing Space (Debt Respite Scheme) to 180 days.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government launched the Breathing Space scheme on 4 May 2021, and as of February 2024, over 216,000 people in problem debt have benefited from Breathing Space protections.
In developing the scheme, the government took the decision that sixty days is an appropriate period for breathing space to last to give individuals the time to engage with debt advice, whilst maintaining fairness and certainty for creditors.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20431, whether HMRC has taken enforcement action on oil originating in Russia and imported from a refinery in India since 21 July 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
HM Revenue and Customs does not comment on operational enforcement matters pertaining to specific import or export scenarios.