Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to establish a compensation package for people affected by the Dolphin Trust scheme.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The UK regulatory agencies are aware of the bankruptcy of German Property Group (GPG), formerly known as Dolphin Trust, and the effect on UK-based investors.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published a joint statement with the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The statement sets out what UK consumers should do if they invested in GPG via an FCA authorised firm – either a financial adviser firm or a Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPP) operator – and they believe they were mis-sold. This includes how to complain to the FOS or submit a claim to the FSCS. The statement can be accessed on the FCA’s website: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/statements/gpg-companies-preliminary-bankruptcy-proceedings.
Some consumers will not have invested in GPG via a regulated financial adviser or a SIPP operator. GPG is incorporated in Germany and is not, nor has ever been an FCA-authorised firm. Unfortunately, in these cases, customers will not have recourse to the FOS or the FSCS.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to allocate funding to the Welsh Government to tackle unsafe cladding in residential properties.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Welsh Government is receiving an average of £2.5 billion per year through the Barnett formula on top of its £15.9 billion annual baseline over the Spending Review 2021 period. This is the largest annual block grant, in real terms, of any spending review settlement since the devolution acts in 1998.
This settlement includes Barnett consequentials on changes in the overall level of funding provided to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, which is responsible for cladding remediation in England. It is for the Welsh Government to allocate this funding as it sees fit across its devolved responsibilities including tackling unsafe cladding in residential properties in Wales.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress has been made on agreeing the pay settlement for staff at the Intellectual Property Office.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
Following a successful pilot, the Intellectual Property Office has been granted approval to agree their annual pay remit through a system called paybill control. They are removed from the Civil Service pay remit guidance process and instead submit their requested paybill control total to HMT each year for approval.
The Intellectual Property Office are finalising their pay award for 2020/21 and will communicate the settlement to staff.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment the Government has made of the level of use of debt management plans as a result of financial difficulties due to the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government continues to engage closely with the debt advice sector, the Money and Pensions Service, the Financial Conduct Authority and other stakeholders to monitor and understand the ongoing and future impact of COVID19 on people’s finances, including on the demand for debt advice and debt solutions, such as debt management plans.
The Government recognises that some people are struggling with their finances at this challenging time. To help people in problem debt get their finances back on track, an extra £37.8 million support package has been made available to debt advice providers this financial year, bringing this year’s budget for free debt advice in England to over £100 million.
From May 2021 the Breathing Space scheme will offer people in problem debt a pause of up to 60 days on most enforcement action, interest, fees and charges, and will encourage them to seek professional debt advice.