Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they monitor whether banks are complying with their legal duty to enable citizens without a fixed address to access a basic bank account; and what are the results of this monitoring.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
The designated providers of basic bank accounts have agreed to report data on basic bank accounts and personal current accounts to HM Treasury for annual publication. These reports are available on the GOV.UK website.[1]
[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/basic-bank-accounts
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the letter from 102 millionaires and billionaires to attendees to the World Economic Forum in Davos, calling for the introduction of wealth taxes.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has noted the open letter and the suggestion of an annual wealth tax.
The Government is committed to a fair tax system in which those with the most contribute the most. For example, the UK’s progressive Income Tax system means the top 1 per cent of Income Taxpayers are projected to pay 28 per cent of all Income Tax, and the top 5 per cent are projected to pay 49 per cent in the year 2021-22.
The UK does not have a single wealth tax, but it does have several taxes on assets and wealth. The UK already taxes assets and wealth across many different economic activities, including the acquisition, holding, transfer and disposal of assets, and income derived from assets.
Notably, in 2020 the Wealth Tax Commission, which has no connection or link to the Government, found that if considering Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Stamp Duty, and Stamp Duty Land Tax, the UK is among the top of the G7 countries for wealth taxes as a percentage of total wealth.
The Wealth Tax Commission also concluded that an annual wealth tax, reportedly suggested by the UK branch of the group behind the letter, would not be effective because of high administrative costs relative to revenue and ease of avoidance. It is also clear that the Wealth Tax Commission’s suggestion of a potential one-off wealth tax in the UK would be a complex undertaking and the amount of revenue raised would be highly dependent on the final design of the tax.
It is also the case that any individual or private business wishing to make a greater contribution to the Exchequer can make voluntary payments to HM Government. More information about how to do so is available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of NatWest bank's closure, without explanation, of the accounts of (1) small business customers after their approval for loans under the Bounce Back Loan Scheme, and (2) the members of the Facebook group ‘NatWest closed down my account'.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government believes that any dispute arising between banks and their customers is usually best resolved by the parties involved. If a customer wishes to pursue a complaint, their first recourse is through the bank's official customer complaints procedure. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) requires banks to properly investigate all complaints and, through ongoing supervision, it continues to monitor the banks' complaint handling processes.
If a customer is not satisfied with their bank's response to their complaint, then they may wish to consider an approach to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The FOS provides a free, independent dispute resolution service for bank customers, including eligible small businesses.