Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to respond to the letters of (a) 27 March, (b) 1 April and (c) 16 April 2020 from the hon. Member for Lanark and Hamilton East on the Coronavirus Jobs Retention Scheme.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
HM Treasury has received unprecedented amounts of correspondence since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, and apologises for the delay in responding to the Honourable Member. The Honourable Member’s correspondence is receiving attention and will be replied to as soon as possible.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to provide furlough payments under the Coronavirus Jobs Retention Scheme for the hospitality sector until social distancing measures allow them to safely reopen, and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Government has extended the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme until October 2020. Extending the scheme in its current form until July will provide workers, businesses and the economy with clarity on this vital support. After July, the Government will introduce more flexibility to the furlough scheme in a measured way that protects people’s incomes and helps support furloughed employees as they return to work. From August through to the end of October, employers currently using the scheme will have more flexibility to bring their furloughed employees back to work part-time while still receiving support from the scheme. Employers using the scheme will start contributing some of the costs of their workers’ salaries, substituting in part the contribution that the Government is currently making. The Government will outline more details of how this will work by the end of May.
It is the case that some firms will be affected by coronavirus for longer than others, and the Government will seek to support these firms appropriately. It would be challenging to target the CJRS to specific sectors in a fair and deliverable way, and it may not be the case that this is the most effective or sensible way to provide longer term support for those sectors most affected by coronavirus.
The Government will continue to monitor developments and engage with affected sectors, with the aim of ensuring that support provided is right for these sectors and for the economy as a whole.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will issue guidance on the Coronavirus Jobs Retention Scheme for umbrella companies on whether they can claim 80 per cent of average take home pay for contract workers in furlough, and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) covers employees on any type of employment contract, including full-time, part-time, agency, flexible or zero-hour contracts. It covers agency workers (including those employed by umbrella companies), so long as the other eligibility conditions of the scheme are met.
Employers should follow HMRC’s comprehensive online guidance in order to calculate the correct reference pay. This guidance can be applied to all forms of employment contract.
Where an employee has been paid a variable amount, the reference pay is calculated by looking at the average pay over the financial year 2019/20, or in some instances by means of a one-year look-back test. Only payments that the employer was obliged to make should be included.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to ensure that February and March new starter workers who were not able to notify HMRC of their employment before 19 March 2020 are eligible for the Coronavirus Jobs Retention Scheme.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Extending the cut-off date for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme beyond 20 March, when the scheme was announced, would enable criminals to exploit the scheme by providing fraudulent payroll data that HMRC could not easily verify. Processing claims beyond 20 March while managing the significant fraud risks would require much greater manual handling by HMRC which would substantially slow down the system and therefore delay the delivery of grants that many businesses desperately need.
Those not eligible for this grant may be able to access the other support the Government is providing, including a package of temporary welfare measures and up to three months’ mortgage payment holidays for those struggling with their mortgage payments.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer,if he will introduce funding to enable people who cannot access superfast broadband to stay connected online during lockdown through mobile data packages.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - Leader of HM Official Opposition
The Government has announced unprecedented support for businesses and workers to protect them against the current economic emergency.
The Government has also worked with the UK’s major telecommunications providers to agree measures to support connectivity for vulnerable consumers and the NHS.
In addition, the government recently announced that vulnerable and disadvantaged children across England are to receive laptops, tablets and 4G routers to make remote education accessible. We are also working with the major telecommunications providers to make it easier for families to access selected educational resources by temporarily exempting these sites from data charges.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the covid-19 outbreak, what guidance his Department has issued to finance companies on the provision of repayment holidays for people that have lost income or been made redundant.
Answered by John Glen
Banks and building societies are ready and able to support consumers impacted by COVID-19. On the 17 March, the Chancellor announced on behalf of the sector that banks and building societies will offer a 3-month ‘mortgage holiday’ for borrowers that are financially struggling with their repayments. This forbearance measure will enable affected borrowers to defer their mortgage payments for up to 3 months while they get back on their feet.
The FCA have also published guidance on payment holidays and repossession action for firms that engage in mortgage lending activities. This means that second charge mortgages are also captured by the measures. You can view the guidance here:
https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/mortgages-coronavirus-consumers
As a form of forbearance, the option of a mortgage repayment holiday is open to any customer regardless of whether they are in payment shortfall. Any customer who is concerned about their current financial situation should get in touch with their lender at the earliest possible opportunity to discuss the best option for their them.
The Government has introduced an unprecedented £350bn package of measures to support businesses access the finance they need during this difficult period, and announced significant measures to directly provide support for SMEs including grants, business rates relief and other tax measures.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his recent announcement on mortgage payment holidays during the covid-19 outbreak extends to those paying second mortgages.
Answered by John Glen
Banks and building societies are ready and able to support consumers impacted by COVID-19. On the 17 March, the Chancellor announced on behalf of the sector that banks and building societies will offer a 3-month ‘mortgage holiday’ for borrowers that are financially struggling with their repayments. This forbearance measure will enable affected borrowers to defer their mortgage payments for up to 3 months while they get back on their feet.
The FCA have also published guidance on payment holidays and repossession action for firms that engage in mortgage lending activities. This means that second charge mortgages are also captured by the measures. You can view the guidance here:
https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/mortgages-coronavirus-consumers
As a form of forbearance, the option of a mortgage repayment holiday is open to any customer regardless of whether they are in payment shortfall. Any customer who is concerned about their current financial situation should get in touch with their lender at the earliest possible opportunity to discuss the best option for their them.
The Government has introduced an unprecedented £350bn package of measures to support businesses access the finance they need during this difficult period, and announced significant measures to directly provide support for SMEs including grants, business rates relief and other tax measures.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress has been made on the public sector pension scheme valuation.
Answered by Rishi Sunak
Valuations of the public service pension schemes are carried out every four years. The valuations set employer contribution rates to ensure the full costs of pensions are recognised and met by employers at the point scheme liabilities arise. The last valuations of the schemes considered the position as at 31 March 2016 and were completed earlier this year. Employer contribution rates have been set and came into effect on 1 April 2019. On 19 January the then Chief Secretary to the Treasury made a written statement (HCWS1286) announcing a pause to the cost control element of the valuations. The pause was necessary following a court ruling that an element of the reforms made to schemes in 2015 gave rise to unlawful discrimination. The matter has been remitted to the Employment Tribunal to determine how the discrimination is to be remedied. The Government has confirmed that it will take steps to remedy the discrimination in all public service pension schemes. Until a remedy is agreed it is not possible to assess the value of the public service pension schemes with any certainty at this time.