Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much of the total Apprenticeship Levy funding collected by HMRC from employers (a) primarily based in Wales and (b) who work across the UK but have a headcount in Wales was transferred to the Treasury in each of the past five years.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
UIN 91154 - While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
UIN 91152 - Reliable estimates of the revenue raised from the Apprenticeship Levy from businesses who work across the UK but have a presence in Wales are not available.
While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
UIN 91151 - Reliable estimates of the revenue raised from the Apprenticeship Levy from businesses primarily based in Wales are not available.
While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much funding was raised by the Apprenticeship Levy from employers who work across the UK, but have a headcount in Wales, in each year of the past five years.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
UIN 91154 - While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
UIN 91152 - Reliable estimates of the revenue raised from the Apprenticeship Levy from businesses who work across the UK but have a presence in Wales are not available.
While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
UIN 91151 - Reliable estimates of the revenue raised from the Apprenticeship Levy from businesses primarily based in Wales are not available.
While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much funding was raised by the Apprenticeship Levy from employers primarily based in Wales in each of the past five years.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
UIN 91154 - While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
UIN 91152 - Reliable estimates of the revenue raised from the Apprenticeship Levy from businesses who work across the UK but have a presence in Wales are not available.
While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
UIN 91151 - Reliable estimates of the revenue raised from the Apprenticeship Levy from businesses primarily based in Wales are not available.
While the Apprenticeship Levy is UK wide, apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved. This means that the devolved governments receive funding through the Barnett formula in relation to English apprenticeship spending as part of their block grant. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of exempting search and rescue vehicles from Vehicle Excise Duty.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government annually reviews the rates and thresholds of taxes and reliefs to ensure that they are appropriate and reflect the current state of the economy. The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events in the context of the public finances.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that pricing mechanisms for infrastructure access do not adversely impact private investment in rural gigabit rollout.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.
In July, we published our draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services that sets out the Government’s view on infrastructure sharing in the fixed telecoms sector, including asking Ofcom to demonstrate greater transparency in how they calculate and set PIA prices.
In the draft Statement we also set out the importance of continued investment, competition and fair pricing. The government is considering consultation responses, market development and the economic context before the final version is published.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2025 to Question 43325 on Deposit Return Schemes: VAT, for what reason her Department is considering applying VAT to unredeemed deposits in the deposit return scheme in the context of HMRC expecting the impact on exchequer receipts to be negligible.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Deposit Returns Scheme (DRS) will launch in the UK in October 2027, introducing mandatory refundable deposits on drinks containers with the aim of increasing recycling.
VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption, and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. VAT is the UK’s third largest tax, forecast to raise £180 billion in 2025/26. Exceptions to the standard rate have always been limited and balanced against affordability considerations.
The previous administration legislated for a simplification to the normal VAT rules so that VAT will only be accounted for on unredeemed deposits rather than on a deposit at the point of sale.
We remain committed to supporting the circular economy through successful implementation of the DRS, and we are keen to ensure that VAT is not a barrier to its effective operation. We are continuing to consider how best to achieve this while maintaining the integrity of the tax and will provide clarity on the VAT treatment of unreturned deposits as soon as possible.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference her Department's policy paper entitled Finance: Interministerial Standing Committee – 17 October 2025, what options were discussed for enhancing the fiscal flexibilities available to devolved Governments; what elements of the operation of the Barnett formula were identified as areas which could be improved; and whether a formal review of (a) Wales's fiscal framework and (b) the operation of the Barnett Formula in Wales were discussed.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
It is important that the Finance: Interministerial Standing Committee remains a space for confidential discussions between governments, so it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail of those discussions.
I look forward to continued engagement with devolved government finance ministers on a wide range of topics.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing the level of the Digital Services Tax.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Decisions on tax are a matter for the Chancellor and any changes will be announced at the budget in the usual way.
The Digital Services Tax is an interim solution to widely held concerns with the international corporate tax framework, and the UK remains committed to remove it once a global solution on the reallocation of taxing rights is in place.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2025 to Question 42630 on Employers' Contributions: Welsh Government, what mechanism her Department will use to provide compensation for public services in Wales for the increase in employers’ National Insurance contribution costs after 2025/26.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Welsh Government’s budget is growing in real terms between 2024-25 and 2028-29 and their Spending Review settlement is the largest in real terms since devolution in 1998. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor agreed to provide funding to the public sector to support with the changes to employer National Insurance.
The devolved governments received funding through the Barnett formula in 2025-26, including on this support. This is the normal operation of the funding arrangements as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy.
The current Welsh Government Spending Review settlement is the largest settlement in real terms of any since devolution.Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether future compensation funding provided to the Welsh Government for increased National Insurance contributions costs for the public sector in Wales will cover this cost in full.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Welsh Government’s budget is growing in real terms between 2024-25 and 2028-29 and their Spending Review settlement is the largest in real terms since devolution in 1998. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor agreed to provide funding to the public sector to support with the changes to employer National Insurance.
The devolved governments received funding through the Barnett formula in 2025-26, including on this support. This is the normal operation of the funding arrangements as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy.
The current Welsh Government Spending Review settlement is the largest settlement in real terms of any since devolution.