Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what foreign state assets are currently frozen by the UK; and in each case, what is the (1) country, (2) value, and (3) reason.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) undertakes an annual review of frozen assets in the UK, requiring all persons or institutions that hold or control frozen assets in the UK to report to OFSI. As stated in OFSI’s most recent Annual Review published in December 2023, as of September 30th 2022 £21.6 billion in frozen funds were reported to OFSI. This figure is provided in aggregate so as not to disclose the value of any funds held by particular individuals. HM Treasury does not break down reported assets in the manner requested.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of individual departmental budgets is spent on logistics, whether by dedicated contract or as part of a broader contract.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Records of spending at this level of granularity are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the factors contributing to the increase from the previous year’s collections in customs duty revenue as published in HMRC accounts for 2022–23.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
As set out in HMRC published accounts, 2021/2022 total customs duty was c.£4.8billion and c.£5.5billion in 2022/2023. This represents an increase of c. £0.7billion in duty collected.
The collection of customs duty revenue depends on a range of factors, such as the customs duty rates applied, overall volumes of imports, and the value of those goods imported.
His Majesty's Government will continue to monitor the collection of customs duty revenue.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what risk mitigation strategies they have in place to ensure that the UK Single Trade Window project stays within the set parameters of scope, budget, and delivery timelines.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
There is significant governance in place to ensure the Single Trade Window (STW) Programme stays within the set parameters of scope, budget and delivery timelines.
The STW will be delivered through strategic releases over several years. This iterative approach will allow regular reviews of delivery against scope, budgets and timelines throughout the Programme’s lifetime and will allow for early escalation and resolution of risks and issues.
Comprehensive internal governance is in place to achieve this. An assurance function within the STW Programme will ensure that functionality developed and released by the Programme’s technical delivery partner delivers the agreed scope and requirements.
In addition to internal Programme governance, the Government’s normal scrutiny through HMRC, HM Treasury, Cabinet Office and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) will apply.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government with which government departments are collaborating with HMRC working to ensure efficient and seamless movement of goods through the UK Single Trade Window.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Government departments with a direct interest in the UK border are collaborating on the design and operation of the UK Single Trade Window and include those listed below. As delivery progresses, the STW Programme may engage with other departments and agencies with an interest in the Single Trade Window.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to release comprehensive guidelines outlining the functionalities of the UK Single Trade Window for the benefit of traders.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
The Government provided an overview of proposed UK Single Trade Window (STW) functionality in the draft Border Target Operating Model (TOM) which was published on 5 April 2023.
A final version of the TOM is expected to be published shortly and will include additional detail on STW functionality in response to stakeholder feedback on the April 2023 draft.
More comprehensive information will become available over time as STW functionality is developed and released incrementally.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have held regarding the development of a national road charging scheme.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
As set out in a letter to the Transport Select Committee in January 2023[1], the Government is currently focusing on delivering on its key priorities and does not currently have plans to consider road pricing.
[1] https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/34225/documents/188339/default/
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on electric vehicle usage by logistics companies of extending the 100 per cent tax-deductible annual investment allowance for capital spending to cover costs associated with increasing electricity supply to logistic sites.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Capital expenditure on plant or machinery for increasing the level of electricity available to logistics sites can already qualify for capital allowances including the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) where the normal conditions for such allowances are met. For example, to be eligible for relief under the plant and machinery capital allowances regime, assets must generally be owned, or treated as owned, by the business.
As capital allowances are fact specific, any assessment of the eligibility of expenditure for a particular allowance will depend entirely on the facts of the particular case.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government, what assessment they have made of the impact on electric vehicle usage by logistics companies of extending the 100 per cent tax-deductible annual investment allowance for capital spending to leased or hired vehicles.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
The Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) allows businesses to deduct the full value of a qualifying item of plant and machinery from profits before tax, up to the AIA limit of £1 million.
Capital expenditure by lessors on non-car electric vehicles (such as vans and HGVs) can qualify for the AIA where the asset is leased or hired out, but the AIA excludes expenditure on cars for which other allowances may be available.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of business rate increases on warehousing on the efficiency of the UK’s logistics network.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
It is important that revaluations are undertaken periodically to maintain accuracy and fairness in the business rates system. Updating rateable values ensures bills more closely reflect the property market and means the burden of rates is fairly redistributed across all properties.
While this will result in bill increases for some ratepayers, the Government is introducing a support package worth £13.6 billion over the next five years to help ratepayers transition to new bills, including: