Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of quantitative easing on the reliability of capital asset pricing models and volatility of different asset classes (1) in the UK, and (2) in other countries.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The separation of fiscal and monetary policy is a key feature of the UK’s economic framework, and essential for the effective delivery of monetary policy. The Government does not comment on the conduct or effectiveness of monetary policy.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of monetary policy on the distribution of wealth across different (1) age groups, and (2) regions of the UK.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
Monetary policy, including decisions on Bank Rate and quantitative easing, is the responsibility of the independent Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England.
The separation of fiscal and monetary policy is a key feature of the UK’s economic framework, and essential for the effective delivery of monetary policy, so the Government does not comment on the conduct or effectiveness of monetary policy.
The Bank of England’s estimates on the distributional impacts of monetary policy can be found in the Bank’s working paper: “The distributional impact of monetary policy easing in the UK between 2008 and 2014.”
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many responses they received to the call for evidence on pensions tax relief administration published in July 2020; when they plan to publish the outcome; and what plans they have to carry out further consultation on the issue of low earners in net pay administration schemes who are paying 25 per cent more for their pensions than if their employer used a relief at source scheme.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government recognises the different impacts of the two systems of paying pension tax relief on pension contributions for workers earning below the personal allowance. The Call for Evidence – in line with the Government’s manifesto commitment to undertake a comprehensive review of this issue – set out the Government’s views on proposals already put forward by stakeholders, invited further proposals, and sought views on the operation of the relief at source method of tax relief for pension contributions.
The Call for Evidence is now closed. The Government is carefully analysing this issue and the responses received to understand what deliverable options for change may exist. These responses have raised technical points that we are continuing to explore with HMRC and others. The Government will respond to the Call for Evidence in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Payment Systems Regulator regarding the need to introduce mandatory protections for victims of authorised push payment scams.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government is committed to tackling fraud and ensuring that victims of Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams are protected.
The Government recognises the work industry has undertaken to date, including the introduction of a voluntary reimbursement Code, which has demonstrably had a beneficial impact. However, the Code, whilst improving matters, comes with limitations, including disparity in how different payment service providers are interpreting their obligations under it, as well as its lack of comprehensive cover across providers.
The Government therefore welcomed the publication of the Payment Systems Regulator’s (PSR) call for views on APP scams in February 2021, which set out various measures that could improve customer outcomes. The Government is of the view that the introduction of Faster Payments Service rules setting reimbursement requirements on all scheme participants is the best possible solution to the issue of APP scams; this will ensure the rules underpinning Faster Payments are fit for purpose.
The Government looks forward to engaging with the outcomes of the PSR's call for views, including considering what further actions may be necessary to make progress on this issue.
The Government continues to engage closely with the PSR on this issue.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Payment Systems Regulator has requested additional powers to create mandatory protections for victims of authorised push payment scams.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government is committed to tackling fraud and ensuring that victims of Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams are protected.
The Government recognises the work industry has undertaken to date, including the introduction of a voluntary reimbursement Code, which has demonstrably had a beneficial impact. However, the Code, whilst improving matters, comes with limitations, including disparity in how different payment service providers are interpreting their obligations under it, as well as its lack of comprehensive cover across providers.
The Government therefore welcomed the publication of the Payment Systems Regulator’s (PSR) call for views on APP scams in February 2021, which set out various measures that could improve customer outcomes. The Government is of the view that the introduction of Faster Payments Service rules setting reimbursement requirements on all scheme participants is the best possible solution to the issue of APP scams; this will ensure the rules underpinning Faster Payments are fit for purpose.
The Government looks forward to engaging with the outcomes of the PSR's call for views, including considering what further actions may be necessary to make progress on this issue.
The Government continues to engage closely with the PSR on this issue.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for mandating the voluntary protections for victims of authorised push payment scams; whether the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has powers to do this using Faster Payment Scheme rules; and, if not, what plans they have to legislate to provide the PSR with such powers.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government is committed to tackling fraud and ensuring that victims of Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams are protected.
The Government recognises the work industry has undertaken to date, including the introduction of a voluntary reimbursement Code, which has demonstrably had a beneficial impact. However, the Code, whilst improving matters, comes with limitations, including disparity in how different payment service providers are interpreting their obligations under it, as well as its lack of comprehensive cover across providers.
The Government therefore welcomed the publication of the Payment Systems Regulator’s (PSR) call for views on APP scams in February 2021, which set out various measures that could improve customer outcomes. The Government is of the view that the introduction of Faster Payments Service rules setting reimbursement requirements on all scheme participants is the best possible solution to the issue of APP scams; this will ensure the rules underpinning Faster Payments are fit for purpose.
The Government looks forward to engaging with the outcomes of the PSR's call for views, including considering what further actions may be necessary to make progress on this issue.
The Government continues to engage closely with the PSR on this issue.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to consider the energy use of cryptocurrencies as part of their preparations for COP26 and other international meetings on climate change during 2021; and what plans they have to investigate how cryptocurrencies affect their requirements for public and private sector organisations to meet climate change targets.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government has been monitoring developments within the cryptoasset industry, including rising energy usage.
The Cryptoasset Taskforce, comprising HM Treasury, the FCA, and the Bank of England, explores the impact of cryptoassets and assesses what, if any, regulation is required in response.
The Government has already taken actions to signal a commitment to green technology, including a pledge to make Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) aligned financial disclosures mandatory across the economy by 2025, making the UK the first G20 nation to make such a commitment.
Additionally, the Government has committed to the implementation of a green taxonomy. This will allow us to accelerate our work towards a greener financial sector, by providing a common definition for environmentally sustainable economy activities.
The Government’s objective for the upcoming COP26 climate change forum is to ensure that every professional financial decision takes climate change into account. The recovery from COVID-19 will determine the mitigation and adaptation pathways for decades to come. We must all do our part – we are working with the financial services sector, international financial institutions, central banks, regulators, and finance ministries to unlock rapid action at scale.
The finance campaign will provide the conditions for a future that is genuinely greener, more resilient and more sustainable than the past. Action on finance underpins all the other COP campaigns: adaptation & resilience, energy transition, nature and zero-emission vehicles. Without the right levels of finance, the rest is not possible.
The Government stands ready to respond to emerging risks or changes in the market and will continue to monitor how cryptoassets are being used in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of people recorded by HMRC as earning below the Personal Allowance for taxable income who contributed to a workplace pension using ‘relief at source’ tax relief in all tax years since 2017; and of this number, how many were (1) women, and (2) men.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
HMRC estimate that 1.3m individuals earning below the personal allowance in 2017-18 made workplace pension contributions via Real Time Information (RTI) using relief at source arrangements. About 65% of these individuals are estimated to be female and 35% are estimated to be male.
The personal allowance in 2017-18 was £11,500.
HMRC’s Survey of Personal Income (SPI) and administrative data was used to produce the estimates. The 2017-18 SPI data (published in March 2020) is the latest year available.
As indicated in HMRC’s statistics announcement, the 2018-19 Personal Incomes Statistics (Distributional analysis) is expected to be published on 31 March 2021 and the Personal Incomes Statistics (Regional analysis) is expected to be published on 28 April 2021.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of people recorded by HMRC as earning below the Personal Allowance for taxable income who contributed to a workplace pension using ‘net pay’ tax relief in all tax years since 2017; and of this number, how many were (1) women, and (2) men.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
HMRC estimates that 1.5m individuals earning below the personal allowance in 2017-18 made workplace pension contributions via Real Time Information (RTI) using net pay arrangements. Around 75% of these individuals are estimated to be female and 25% are estimated to be male.
The personal allowance in 2017-18 was £11,500.
HMRC’s Survey of Personal Income (SPI) and administrative data was used to produce the estimates. The 2017-18 SPI data (published in March 2020) is the latest year available. The SPI is updated annually.
As indicated in HMRC’s statistics announcement, the 2018-19 Personal Incomes Statistics (Distributional analysis) is expected to be published on 31 March 2021 and the Personal Incomes Statistics (Regional analysis) is expected to be published on 28 April 2021.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish the results of their call for evidence on pensions tax relief administration, and in particular those relating to the issue of low earners paying 25 per cent extra for their pension if their employer chooses to use a ‘net pay’ auto-enrolment pension scheme.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government recognises the different impacts of the two systems of paying pension tax relief on pension contributions for workers earning below the personal allowance. At Budget 2020, the Government announced it would launch a Call for Evidence on pensions tax relief administration, in line with its manifesto commitment to undertake a comprehensive review of this issue.
This Call for Evidence set out the Government’s views on proposals already put forward by stakeholders, invited further proposals, and sought views on the operation of the RAS method.
The Call for Evidence is now closed. The Government is analysing the responses and will respond in due course.