Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor for the Exchequer, what happens to money from the public purse not spent by the Office for Nuclear Radiation when there is budgetary underspend.
Answered by John Glen
The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) operates a charging model which enables them to receive the majority of its funding through charges to industry clients. A proportion of ONR funding is provided by the Exchequer, via the Department for Work and Pensions as the ONR sponsorship department. Any resources, capital or cash authorised in the Supply Estimates but not used by the ONR at the end of a financial year are no longer authorised for use. Where the ONR has drawn down unspent cash from the Consolidated Fund, this will be immediately surrenderable back to the Fund.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government plans to help support those people affected by the collapse of the Safe Hand Funeral plan group.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
In January 2021, the government legislated to bring all pre-paid funeral plan providers and intermediaries within the regulatory remit of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) from 29 July 2022. This has ensured that 1.6 million funeral plan customers are, for the first time, protected by compulsory and robust regulation as they seek to put their affairs in order.
Safe Hands Plans went into administration in March 2022. The government understands that this will be very concerning for customers of Safe Hands.
While the detailed investigation being carried out by the administrators is ongoing, the government continues to work closely with the FCA to monitor the implementation of regulation in this sector.
The government has been supportive of steps taken by the sector to provide assistance to Safe Hands customers. Dignity and Co-op – two of the largest providers in the country – have recently offered Safe Hands’ customers new funeral plans at a substantially discounted price, which may be helpful to some affected planholders.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much data HM Revenue and Customs holds on each staff member in each government department.
Answered by Richard Fuller - Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury
HMRC holds data about its own staff for management purposes and to fulfil its functions, consistent with any other employer. This includes information such as grade, salary, bank details, and address.
For other Civil Servants outside of HMRC, HMRC would hold the same data as for any other employee in the tax system, in the private and public sectors. This is to administer the tax system.
HMRC publishes full details of the data held about all customers, how, and when it is used on their Privacy Notice, published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/data-protection-act-dpa-information-hm-revenue-and-customs-hold-about-you/data-protection-act-dpa-information-hm-revenue-and-customs-hold-about-you.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps he is taking to reduce the impact on households of the rise in the cost of living.
Answered by John Glen
The government understands how the rising cost of living is making life harder for people. These are global challenges however, as set out in the Spring Statement, the government is providing support worth over £22 billion in 2022-23 to help families with these pressures.
For example, a typical family with 2 children where one adult is on the average employee salary and the other works 16 hours at the NLW will be around than £3,000 a year better off as a result of recent government action, notably the NICs primary threshold change, UC taper rate and work allowance changes, and increase in the National Living Wage, even taking account the introduction of the Health and Social Care Levy.