Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the tax treaty between the UK and Canada overrides the legislation and HMRC guidance which advises that MPs and peers should be domiciled in the UK for tax purposes.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The tax treaty between the UK and Canada does not override the provision of UK law that treats members of the House of Commons and House of Lords as domiciled in the UK for tax purposes.
UK law also treats members of the House of Commons and House of Lords as resident in the UK for tax purposes. Where an MP or peer was also resident in Canada for tax purposes under Canadian law, a tie-breaker in the tax treaty would determine the state in which the member was considered to be resident for the purposes of applying the tax treaty.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the start date of the new IR35 regulations for large or medium companies which do not meet the simplified test conditions; and what plans they have to ensure that the start date is clearly stated on their IR35 website.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The reform of the off-payroll working rules will come into effect for large or medium-sized organisations outside the public sector from 6 April 2021. Organisations will need to consider whether they meet the conditions of a large or medium-sized organisation in the financial year relevant to the tax year 2021/22.
In order to help businesses prepare and apply the rules, HMRC have published guidance on the definition of a large or medium-sized organisation.[1] The simplified test conditions apply to non-corporate entities only. HMRC’s online guidance reflects the 6 April 2021 implementation date.
HMRC are committed to supporting organisations and individuals in the run up to, and beyond the reform being implemented. HMRC are providing webinars, workshops and one-to-one calls, as well as publishing updated guidance and factsheets to enable organisations to prepare.
[1] https://www.gov.uk/guidance/april-2020-changes-to-off-payroll-working-for-clients
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when the changes to the off-payroll working rules will start to apply for those large or medium-sized companies that do not meet the simplified test conditions; and whether they will make changes to their online guidance to clarify the start date for those companies.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The reform of the off-payroll working rules will come into effect for large or medium-sized organisations outside the public sector from 6 April 2021. Organisations will need to consider whether they meet the conditions of a large or medium-sized organisation in the financial year relevant to the tax year 2021/22.
In order to help businesses prepare and apply the rules, HMRC have published guidance on the definition of a large or medium-sized organisation.[1] The simplified test conditions apply to non-corporate entities only. HMRC’s online guidance reflects the 6 April 2021 implementation date.
HMRC are committed to supporting organisations and individuals in the run up to, and beyond the reform being implemented. HMRC are providing webinars, workshops and one-to-one calls, as well as publishing updated guidance and factsheets to enable organisations to prepare.
[1] https://www.gov.uk/guidance/april-2020-changes-to-off-payroll-working-for-clients
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the decision to stop allowing claims under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for furloughed employees serving statutory and contractual notice periods from 1 December 2020, what support is available to employers who have been forced to close and are now obliged to give employees notice for redundancy.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government has spent over £280 billion to put in place a substantial package of support measures which are carefully designed to complement each other to provide businesses and individuals with certainty over the coming months. The objective of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is to help employers whose operations have been severely affected by coronavirus to retain their employees and protect the UK economy.
Employers which have been forced to close due to national restrictions – although not eligible to claim Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) grants for employees entering a contractual redundancy period – may still be eligible for other elements of the Government’s support package. This package of measures includes Government-backed loans, tax deferrals, Business Rate reliefs, and general and sector-specific grants. The Government urges businesses to visit the online Coronavirus Business Support Finder Tool for tailored information on how to access support available to them.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide financial support to those registered as self-employed who were excluded from previous COVID-19 financial support schemes.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The Government has provided, and will continue to provide, generous support to the self-employed during the COVID-19 pandemic through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS). The third grant, combined with up to £14,070 worth of support for each individual from the first and second grants, makes the SEISS one of the most generous schemes for the self-employed in the world. The Government continues to take a flexible approach and keeps all impacts and policies under review. Details of the fourth SEISS grant will be available in due course.The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme is one part of a substantial package of support available for the self-employed. Those ineligible for the SEISS Grant Extension may still be eligible for other elements of the support available. The Universal Credit standard allowance has been temporarily increased for 2020-21 and the Minimum Income Floor relaxed for the duration of the crisis, so that where self-employed claimants' earnings have fallen significantly, their Universal Credit award will have increased to reflect their lower earnings. In addition to this, they may also have access to other elements of the package, including Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support, mortgage holidays, self-isolation support payments, and other business support grants.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend the furlough scheme beyond 30 April.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
As the Chancellor announced on 17 December 2020, the Government will provide a further update on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme at the Budget on 3 March.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on consumers of EU-based companies suspending deliveries to the UK because of documentation and taxation requirements for imported goods following the end of the transition period for the UK’s departure from the EU.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
As with all new tax measures the Government includes its assessment of the impacts of the changes in Tax Information and Impact Notes. Notes for measures recently legislated for in the Taxation (Post-transition Period) Act were published alongside that legislation.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the total daily cost of their COVID-19 financial support packages.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
In their November 2020 forecast, the Office for Budget Responsibility estimated that costs associated with COVID-19 related support was approximately £280 billion. The OBR will publish a new estimate when they release their next forecast at the Budget on the 3 March.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to exempt research councils from the one-year spending review so they can fund long-term projects.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
To provide certainty to the research community, we are providing a multi-year settlement for UK Research and Innovation science.
This includes increasing funding for core UK Research and Innovation science by 9% next year and £400 million on average per annum until 23-24. By 23-24, the government will be investing £1.4 billion more per annum in core funding for its world-leading research base compared to 20-21.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reasons for the reduction in the number of people who are self-employed; and what steps, if any, they are taking to reverse the downward trend.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The UK has one of the most generous self-employed coronavirus support schemes in the world. The SEISS Grant Extension continues this critical support to the self-employed. The grant will be limited to self-employed individuals who are currently eligible for the SEISS and are actively continuing to trade but are facing reduced demand due to COVID-19. The extension will be in the form of two taxable grants. The first grant will cover a three-month period from the start of November until the end of January. This initial grant will cover 80% of average monthly trading profits, paid out in a single instalment covering three months’ worth of profits for 1 November 2020 to 31 January 2020, and capped at £7,500 in total. The second grant will cover a three-month period from the start of February until the end of April. The Government will review the level of the second grant and set this in due course.
Nonetheless, ONS data suggests the number of self-employed people dropped by 502,000 (a 10.0% drop) between December-February and July-September 2020.
The Government continues to provide additional support to help people start their own business, or develop their business if they are already self-employed. The New Enterprise Allowance provides support including mentoring and an allowance. In order to be eligible, claimants must be aged over 18 and either they or their partner must receive Universal Credit, Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance, or they must receive Income Support and be a lone parent, sick or disabled.
Those on the New Enterprise Allowance have a mentor who gives them advice and support to help them set up their business and start to trade. Once their mentor has approved their business plan they may get a weekly allowance worth up to £1,274 over 26 weeks and they can apply for a loan to help with start-up costs.
Those who are already self-employed but not earning enough to move off Universal Credit completely can also benefit from the scheme. They may be able to get a mentor to give them advice and support to help them develop their business and apply for a start-up loan if their business is less than two years old.
New Enterprise Allowance contracts are set to end in 2021. The Government is looking into a replacement offer, and hopes to announce more details in due course.