Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact, following the ending of the VAT Retail Export Scheme, on (1) the retail, (2) the tourism, and (3) the attractions, sectors.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government published a consultation on the potential approach to duty-free and tax-free goods following the transition period which ran from 11 March to 20 May. During this time the Government held a number of virtual meetings with stakeholders to hear their views, and received 73 responses to the consultation. The Government is also continuing to meet and discuss with stakeholders following the announcement of these policies.
The detailed rationale for these changes and a list of respondents to the consultation can be found in the summary of responses to the consultation.
HMRC estimate that VAT Retail Export Scheme refunds cost about £0.5 billion in VAT in 2019 for about 1.2 million non-EU visitors. HMRC also estimate that fewer than one in ten non-EU visitors use the VAT Retail Export Scheme.
In 2019 the ONS estimate there were substantially more EU visitors (24.8 million) than non-EU passengers (16.0 million) to the UK. This implies an extension to EU residents would significantly increase the cost by up to an estimated £0.9 billion. This would result in a large amount of deadweight loss by subsidising spending from EU visitors which already happens without a refund mechanism in place, potentially taking the total cost up to about £1.4 billion per annum.
The final costings will be subject to scrutiny by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility and will be set out at the next forecast.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what decision they have reached following their consultation on the proposal that employers hiring an ex-offender should receive a National Insurance holiday for that individual.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government keeps all taxes under review and will continue to consider this proposal in light of its wider strategy on supporting ex-offenders.
The Government has already taken a number of steps to support ex-offenders in gaining employment, including establishing the New Futures Network, a specialist part of the prison service that brokers partnerships between prisons and employers; and committing to deliver a Prison Education Service, with a key priority being to enable more prisoners to find employment on release.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to encourage employers to take on ex-offenders.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Ministry of Justice is committed to increasing the number of employers that provide employment for ex-offenders.
The New Futures Network (NFN) was established as a specialist part of the prison service that brokers partnerships between prisons and employers. These partnerships help businesses fill skills gaps and prisoners to find employment on release. NFN continues to work across England and Wales to engage employers to employ ex-offenders and support them to do so.
We also understand that employers want ex-offenders to leave custody job-ready and so this Government committed in its 2019 Manifesto to deliver a Prison Education Service, with a key priority being to enable more prisoners to find employment on release.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they give to the political views of an individual being considered for a trusteeship which they have to approve.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Public appointments are made by Ministers following the Governance Code on Public Appointments. This Code sets out the principles that should underpin all public appointments, including those appointments that Ministers have delegated to others.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they give to statements revealing views opposed to Brexit when deciding on public appointments.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Public appointments are made by Ministers following the Governance Code on Public Appointments. This Code sets out the principles that should underpin all public appointments, including those appointments that Ministers have delegated to others.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people have been extradited to the United States under the UK–US extradition treaty of 2003.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Extradition Treaty between the UK and the US came into force on 26 April 2007. Since that date 133 people have been extradited to the US. Of those, nine were extradited for terrorism offences and 57 were extradited for finance-related charges, including wire fraud. The following offences have been included in this broad category of criminality:
Information on plea bargaining is not centrally recorded by the Home Office.
All figures are from local management information and have not been quality assured to the level of published National Statistics. As such they should be treated as provisional and therefore subject to change. The figures do not include Scotland, which deals with its own extradition cases.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people extradited to the United States under the UK–US extradition treaty of 2003 were accused of (1) offences related to terrorism, and (2) finance-related charges, including wire fraud.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Extradition Treaty between the UK and the US came into force on 26 April 2007. Since that date 133 people have been extradited to the US. Of those, nine were extradited for terrorism offences and 57 were extradited for finance-related charges, including wire fraud. The following offences have been included in this broad category of criminality:
Information on plea bargaining is not centrally recorded by the Home Office.
All figures are from local management information and have not been quality assured to the level of published National Statistics. As such they should be treated as provisional and therefore subject to change. The figures do not include Scotland, which deals with its own extradition cases.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many of those extradited under the UK–US extradition treaty of 2003 entered a plea bargain in the US judicial system.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Extradition Treaty between the UK and the US came into force on 26 April 2007. Since that date 133 people have been extradited to the US. Of those, nine were extradited for terrorism offences and 57 were extradited for finance-related charges, including wire fraud. The following offences have been included in this broad category of criminality:
Information on plea bargaining is not centrally recorded by the Home Office.
All figures are from local management information and have not been quality assured to the level of published National Statistics. As such they should be treated as provisional and therefore subject to change. The figures do not include Scotland, which deals with its own extradition cases.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether (1) the number, and (2) the cost, of (a) those directly employed by government departments, and (b) those hired as consultants by government departments, to work on matters related to Brexit, has increased since the Brexit referendum; and if so, by how much.
Answered by Lord Bates
Whilst HM Treasury has oversight of all policies with spending implications, we do not collate information on recruitment numbers or individual costs, including recruitment and consultancy costs, incurred ahead of EU Exit. Where spend is not novel, contentious or repercussive, and is not above delegated limits, departments have autonomy to incur expenditure without seeking formal HM Treasury clearance.
Asked by: Baroness Wheatcroft (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether (1) the number, and (2) the cost, of (a) those directly employed by, and (b) those hired as consultants by, the Department for International Trade to work on matters related to Brexit, has increased since the Brexit referendum; and if so, by how much.
Answered by Baroness Fairhead
Leaving the European Union is an all-of-government operation. The Department for Exiting the European Union is doing detailed work with departments to prepare for the upcoming negotiations by understanding the risks and opportunities of leaving the EU and coordinating planning.
The Department for International Trade was established to secure UK and global prosperity by promoting and financing international trade and investment and championing free trade.
Given the interactions between EU exit work and the Department’s other priorities, it would not be possible to give a specific figure.