Baroness Wheatcroft Portrait

Baroness Wheatcroft

Crossbench - Life peer

Became Member: 22nd December 2010


2 APPG memberships (as of 24 Jan 2024)
Corporate Governance, Future Financial Services
1 Former APPG membership
Challenger Banks and Building Societies
Economic Affairs Committee
25th Nov 2014 - 27th Apr 2017
Finance Bill Sub-Committee
8th Dec 2015 - 4th Mar 2016
Constitution Committee
17th Oct 2012 - 3rd Dec 2014
Finance Bill Sub-Committee
8th Jan 2014 - 11th Mar 2014
Olympic and Paralympic Legacy Committee
16th May 2013 - 6th Nov 2013
Finance Bill Sub-Committee
4th Dec 2012 - 5th Mar 2013
Trusts (Capital and Income) Bill [HL] Special Public Bill Committee
19th Jun 2012 - 24th Jul 2012
Draft Financial Services Bill (Joint Committee)
20th Jul 2011 - 13th Dec 2011


Division Voting information

During the current Parliament, Baroness Wheatcroft has voted in 341 divisions, and never against the majority of their Party.
View All Baroness Wheatcroft Division Votes

Debates during the 2019 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Lord Bethell (Conservative)
(29 debate interactions)
Lord Callanan (Conservative)
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
(28 debate interactions)
Baroness Penn (Conservative)
Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
(26 debate interactions)
View All Sparring Partners
Department Debates
Department of Health and Social Care
(48 debate contributions)
Cabinet Office
(33 debate contributions)
Home Office
(26 debate contributions)
View All Department Debates
Legislation Debates
Financial Services and Markets Act 2023
(2,430 words contributed)
Finance Act 2020
(1,278 words contributed)
Elections Act 2022
(989 words contributed)
View All Legislation Debates
View all Baroness Wheatcroft's debates

Lords initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Baroness Wheatcroft, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.


Baroness Wheatcroft has not introduced any legislation before Parliament

Baroness Wheatcroft has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting


Latest 18 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
2nd Mar 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they give to the political views of an individual being considered for a trusteeship which they have to approve.

Public appointments are made by Ministers following the Governance Code on Public Appointments. This Code sets out the principles that should underpin all public appointments, including those appointments that Ministers have delegated to others.

Lord True
Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
2nd Mar 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they give to statements revealing views opposed to Brexit when deciding on public appointments.

Public appointments are made by Ministers following the Governance Code on Public Appointments. This Code sets out the principles that should underpin all public appointments, including those appointments that Ministers have delegated to others.

Lord True
Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
18th Jan 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what sanctions they will impose on businesses which insist that staff attend the workplace when they could work effectively from home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The current Covid restrictions guidance states that you can only leave home for work purposes where it is unreasonable to do your job from home. It is important that people stay at home wherever possible to minimise the risk of transmission and Government will continue to reinforce this message when engaging with businesses and representative organisations across a range of different sectors.

Under existing health and safety laws, employers have a duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of their employees and other people who might be affected by their business. Employers must do whatever is reasonably practicable to achieve this and this includes requiring and supporting those who can reasonably work from home to do so.

If employees are concerned that their employer is not taking all practical steps to support working from home, then they can report this to their local authority or the Health and Safety Executive who can take a range of actions.

Lord Callanan
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
18th Jan 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ascertain whether businesses are insisting that staff attend the workplace when they could reasonably be expected to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The current Covid restrictions guidance states that you can only leave home for work purposes where it is unreasonable to do your job from home. It is important that people stay at home wherever possible to minimise the risk of transmission and Government will continue to reinforce this message when engaging with businesses and representative organisations across a range of different sectors.

Lord Callanan
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
18th Jan 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the increase in the cost of transporting dogs from Northern Ireland to Great Britain since 31 December 2020.

We are not aware of increased costs on this route as there are no specific animal health or documentary requirements to enter Great Britain from Northern Ireland with a non-commercial pet, or commercial dog. We would welcome further information from stakeholders and members of the public on costs associated with these movements. For information on entrance requirements for dogs travelling from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, the public should consult the information provided by the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in Northern Ireland, on their website.

27th Jan 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the policy on working from home which is applied at the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency office in Cardiff.

Since the start of the pandemic, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has put in place a range of measures to minimise the number of people working in its offices in the Swansea campus at any one time.

Around 2,000 of the DVLA’s over 6,000 staff are currently working from home, the majority of whom have done so since the first lockdown in March 2020. Staff in operational roles that cannot be carried out from home are on site, with around 2,000 on the campus at any one time, as the DVLA operates shifts and many staff work part time.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton
Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
27th Jan 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of the staff at the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency office in Cardiff have been required to attend the office during the period when Public Health England COVID-19 guidance has been to work from home where possible.

Since the start of the pandemic, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has put in place a range of measures to minimise the number of people working in its offices in the Swansea campus at any one time.

Around 2,000 of the DVLA’s over 6,000 staff are currently working from home, the majority of whom have done so since the first lockdown in March 2020. Staff in operational roles that cannot be carried out from home are on site, with around 2,000 on the campus at any one time, as the DVLA operates shifts and many staff work part time.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton
Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
4th Nov 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Ministerial Directions have been issued in the Department of Health and Social Care since October 2020; and what matters they related to.

No Ministerial Directions have been issued in the Department of Health and Social Care since October 2020.

27th Jan 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the provision of vaccines against COVID-19 for (1) elderly, or (2) vulnerable, patients hospitalised for other conditions.

By mid-February we successfully offered a first vaccine dose to everyone in the top four priority groups identified by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation as follows:

- all residents in a care home for older adults and their carers;

- all those 80 years of age and over and frontline health and social care workers;

- all those 75 years of age and over; and

- all those 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable individuals.

The latest NHS England data dated 4 March shows that 7,300,964 individuals aged 70 years old or over have been vaccinated with at least one dose and 1,961,501 clinically extremely vulnerable patients have been vaccinated with at least one dose. This means 88.3% of the population identified as clinically extremely vulnerable have received at least one dose. We do not hold figures for vulnerable patients hospitalised for other conditions, but hospital hubs will typically vaccinate eligible inpatients where clinically appropriate.

4th Nov 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Ministerial Directions have been issued in Her Majesty's Treasury since October 2020; and what matters they related to.

None.

There have been two Ministerial Directions issued since October 2020: one by the Secretary of State in Defra concerning a Movement Assistance Scheme to support traders moving agri-food commodities and equines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland; and one by the Secretary of State in the then Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government concerning the funding of fire alarms and walking watches for private and social sector buildings over 18 metres with unsafe cladding.

4th Nov 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Ministerial Directions have been issued since October 2020.

There have been two Ministerial Directions issued since October 2020: one by the Secretary of State in Defra concerning a Movement Assistance Scheme to support traders moving agri-food commodities and equines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland; and one by the Secretary of State in the then Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government concerning the funding of fire alarms and walking watches for private and social sector buildings over 18 metres with unsafe cladding.

7th Oct 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consultation they have had, if any, with (1) Visit Britain, (2) the British Retail Consortium, (3) the Walpole Group, (4) the Airport Operators Association, and,(5) the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions, about the decision to end the VAT Retail Export Scheme.

The Government published a consultation on the potential approach to duty-free and tax-free goods following the transition period which ran from 11 March to 20 May. During this time the Government held a number of virtual meetings with stakeholders to hear their views, and received 73 responses to the consultation. The Government is also continuing to meet and discuss with stakeholders following the announcement of these policies.

The detailed rationale for these changes and a list of respondents to the consultation can be found in the summary of responses to the consultation.

HMRC estimate that VAT Retail Export Scheme refunds cost about £0.5 billion in VAT in 2019 for about 1.2 million non-EU visitors. HMRC also estimate that fewer than one in ten non-EU visitors use the VAT Retail Export Scheme.

In 2019 the ONS estimate there were substantially more EU visitors (24.8 million) than non-EU passengers (16.0 million) to the UK. This implies an extension to EU residents would significantly increase the cost by up to an estimated £0.9 billion. This would result in a large amount of deadweight loss by subsidising spending from EU visitors which already happens without a refund mechanism in place, potentially taking the total cost up to about £1.4 billion per annum.

The final costings will be subject to scrutiny by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility and will be set out at the next forecast.

7th Oct 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact, following the ending of the VAT Retail Export Scheme, on (1) the retail, (2) the tourism, and (3) the attractions, sectors.

The Government published a consultation on the potential approach to duty-free and tax-free goods following the transition period which ran from 11 March to 20 May. During this time the Government held a number of virtual meetings with stakeholders to hear their views, and received 73 responses to the consultation. The Government is also continuing to meet and discuss with stakeholders following the announcement of these policies.

The detailed rationale for these changes and a list of respondents to the consultation can be found in the summary of responses to the consultation.

HMRC estimate that VAT Retail Export Scheme refunds cost about £0.5 billion in VAT in 2019 for about 1.2 million non-EU visitors. HMRC also estimate that fewer than one in ten non-EU visitors use the VAT Retail Export Scheme.

In 2019 the ONS estimate there were substantially more EU visitors (24.8 million) than non-EU passengers (16.0 million) to the UK. This implies an extension to EU residents would significantly increase the cost by up to an estimated £0.9 billion. This would result in a large amount of deadweight loss by subsidising spending from EU visitors which already happens without a refund mechanism in place, potentially taking the total cost up to about £1.4 billion per annum.

The final costings will be subject to scrutiny by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility and will be set out at the next forecast.

2nd Mar 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what decision they have reached following their consultation on the proposal that employers hiring an ex-offender should receive a National Insurance holiday for that individual.

The Government keeps all taxes under review and will continue to consider this proposal in light of its wider strategy on supporting ex-offenders.

The Government has already taken a number of steps to support ex-offenders in gaining employment, including establishing the New Futures Network, a specialist part of the prison service that brokers partnerships between prisons and employers; and committing to deliver a Prison Education Service, with a key priority being to enable more prisoners to find employment on release.

26th Feb 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people extradited to the United States under the UK–US extradition treaty of 2003 were accused of (1) offences related to terrorism, and (2) finance-related charges, including wire fraud.

The Extradition Treaty between the UK and the US came into force on 26 April 2007. Since that date 133 people have been extradited to the US. Of those, nine were extradited for terrorism offences and 57 were extradited for finance-related charges, including wire fraud. The following offences have been included in this broad category of criminality:

  • Wire Fraud
  • Bribery
  • Fraud
  • Conspiracy to Defraud
  • Tax Evasion / Offences
  • Securities Fraud
  • Money Laundering
  • Computer Fraud
  • Mail fraud

Information on plea bargaining is not centrally recorded by the Home Office.

All figures are from local management information and have not been quality assured to the level of published National Statistics. As such they should be treated as provisional and therefore subject to change. The figures do not include Scotland, which deals with its own extradition cases.

Baroness Williams of Trafford
Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
26th Feb 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many of those extradited under the UK–US extradition treaty of 2003 entered a plea bargain in the US judicial system.

The Extradition Treaty between the UK and the US came into force on 26 April 2007. Since that date 133 people have been extradited to the US. Of those, nine were extradited for terrorism offences and 57 were extradited for finance-related charges, including wire fraud. The following offences have been included in this broad category of criminality:

  • Wire Fraud
  • Bribery
  • Fraud
  • Conspiracy to Defraud
  • Tax Evasion / Offences
  • Securities Fraud
  • Money Laundering
  • Computer Fraud
  • Mail fraud

Information on plea bargaining is not centrally recorded by the Home Office.

All figures are from local management information and have not been quality assured to the level of published National Statistics. As such they should be treated as provisional and therefore subject to change. The figures do not include Scotland, which deals with its own extradition cases.

Baroness Williams of Trafford
Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
26th Feb 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people have been extradited to the United States under the UK–US extradition treaty of 2003.

The Extradition Treaty between the UK and the US came into force on 26 April 2007. Since that date 133 people have been extradited to the US. Of those, nine were extradited for terrorism offences and 57 were extradited for finance-related charges, including wire fraud. The following offences have been included in this broad category of criminality:

  • Wire Fraud
  • Bribery
  • Fraud
  • Conspiracy to Defraud
  • Tax Evasion / Offences
  • Securities Fraud
  • Money Laundering
  • Computer Fraud
  • Mail fraud

Information on plea bargaining is not centrally recorded by the Home Office.

All figures are from local management information and have not been quality assured to the level of published National Statistics. As such they should be treated as provisional and therefore subject to change. The figures do not include Scotland, which deals with its own extradition cases.

Baroness Williams of Trafford
Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
2nd Mar 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to encourage employers to take on ex-offenders.

The Ministry of Justice is committed to increasing the number of employers that provide employment for ex-offenders.

The New Futures Network (NFN) was established as a specialist part of the prison service that brokers partnerships between prisons and employers. These partnerships help businesses fill skills gaps and prisoners to find employment on release. NFN continues to work across England and Wales to engage employers to employ ex-offenders and support them to do so.

We also understand that employers want ex-offenders to leave custody job-ready and so this Government committed in its 2019 Manifesto to deliver a Prison Education Service, with a key priority being to enable more prisoners to find employment on release.