Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what her planned timetable is for ending the investment allowance within the Energy Profits Levy.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Changes to the Energy Profits Levy (EPL), including increasing the levy by 3 per cent to 38 per cent and removing the levy’s 29% investment allowance, will be implemented from 1 November 2024. This was announced by the Chancellor on 29th July and the Government will legislate for these changes in the Autumn Finance Bill.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of removing the VAT exemption on independent school fees on deployed armed forces personnel and their families.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity, ensuring every child has access to high-quality education, which is why we have made the tough decision to end tax breaks for private schools. This will raise revenue for essential public services, including investing in the education system.
Recognising the enormous sacrifices our military families make, the Ministry of Defence provide the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) to eligible Service Personnel. The government will monitor closely the impact of these policy changes on affected military families and the upcoming Spending Review is the right time to consider any changes to this scheme.
The Government has published a technical Note and draft VAT legislation outlining the changes; a technical consultation will be open until 15 September.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the next meeting of the Fiscal Forum between representatives of the oil and gas industry and HMT officials will go ahead.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Oil and Gas Fiscal Forum was held on 12 August 2024, chaired by the Exchequer Secretary and attended by senior representatives from the oil and gas industry.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the next meeting of the Fiscal Forum between representatives of the oil and gas industry and HMT officials will go ahead.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Oil and Gas Fiscal Forum was held on 12 August 2024, chaired by the Exchequer Secretary and attended by senior representatives from the oil and gas industry.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential economic impact of the Energy Profits Levy on the North East of Scotland.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) most recent forecast of tax revenues from the oil and gas sector was published at Spring Budget 2024 in the Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO) March 2024. It can be found at: https://obr.uk/docs/dlm_uploads/E03057758_OBR_EFO-March-2024_Web-AccessibleFinal.pdf
Forecasts for investment in the sector are published alongside the EFO. All OBR oil and gas forecasts will take into account policy decisions impacting the production of oil and gas across the UK and UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) and do not provide a breakdown by region.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the projected revenue is to His Majesty's Treasury from oil and gas companies as a result of the policy to ban new oil and gas exploration licences.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The government does not intend to issue new licences to explore new oil and gas fields. We will share more details on our plans for oil and gas licensing in due course.
Forecasts for oil and gas tax revenues are published by the Office for Budget Responsibility. Future forecasts will take into account any changes to policy that may have an impact on production or revenues.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the removal of the investment allowance in the Energy Profits Levy on private investment into energy transition.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government’s tax commitments are set out in the manifesto. HM Treasury are working to deliver them and will set out further details in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has carried out an economic impact assessment of increasing the Energy Profits Levy.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government’s tax commitments are set out in the manifesto. HM Treasury are working to deliver them and will set out further details in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether it is her policy to provide National Insurance relief for eligible employers recruiting veterans in their first civilian role after leaving military service.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The National Insurance contributions (NICs) relief for veterans means that businesses pay no employer NICs on salaries of up to £50,270 for one year of a veteran's first civilian employment. Businesses can claim the relief until April 2025.