Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) companies pay their employees the minimum wage and that (b) police forces are able to enforce related legal standards.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) receives it. HMRC enforce the NMW and the National Living Wage (NLW) on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
All businesses, irrespective of size or business sector, are responsible for paying the correct minimum wage to their staff, and HMRC won’t hesitate to take action to ensure that workers receive what they are legally entitled to and continue to crack down on employers who ignore the law. Since 2015 HMRC has secured over £115 million for more than 1.1 million workers.
HMRC considers all complaints from workers. If anyone thinks they are not receiving at least the minimum wage, they can contact Acas, in confidence, on: 0300 123 1100, or report their employer online here: www.gov.uk/minimum-wage-complaint.
Consequences for not complying with paying NMW can include fines of 200 per cent of the arrears, public naming and, for the most serious offences, criminal prosecution.
As well as investigating worker complaints HMRC also undertake proactive investigations (referred to as targeted enforcement) based on the identification of the risk of non-compliance with NMW legislation.
In addition to enforcement, HMRC also deliver a programme of education and upstream ‘Promote’ work designed to help businesses understand their obligations and encourage them to comply. This involves a range of activities to increase both employers’ and workers’ understanding of NMW rules including one-to-many letters, webinars, podcasts, and media campaigns.
Breaches of NMW legislation are normally a civil matter, but HMRC will refer the most serious cases to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) where HMRC identify an offence under Section 31 of the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 involving obstruction, falsifying of documents, or wilful failure to pay workers the minimum wage.
HMRC may also refer NMW offences to the CPS for prosecution that form part of a pattern of suspected or potential criminality, for example, suspected tax fraud, or wider offences such as employing illegal workers.
However, prosecutions can cause delays in recovering arrears for workers and do not necessarily guarantee payment, and consequently, prosecution is reserved for the most serious non-compliance and is not necessarily the right approach in most cases.
HMRC continues to work with other agencies, including the police, on joint operations to tackle NMW underpayment, and other labour market risks, such as illegal working and modern slavery, for which those agencies are responsible.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a windfall tax on oil and gas producers to help fund a package of support for households struggling with the cost of energy bills.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The UK Government places additional taxes on the extraction of oil and gas, with companies engaged in the production of oil and gas on the UK Continental Shelf subject to headline tax rates on their profits that are currently more than double those paid by other businesses. To date, the sector has paid more than £375 billion in production taxes.
The Government understands that people are concerned about pressures on household budgets and has been clear that protecting consumers is its top priority. The Chancellor announced a generous package of support on 3 February 2022, with a £150 council tax non-repayable rebate from April and a further reduction of £200 on energy bills in October. The £200 reduction in households’ energy bills from October will help customers manage the unprecedented increase in energy bills by spreading the increased costs caused by high global gas prices over time, so they are more manageable for households.
All taxes are kept under review.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of reducing beer duty and alcohol duty to help support pubs.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
As announced at Autumn Budget 2021, the duty rates on alcohol including beer will be frozen for another year. This is expected to save consumers £3 billion over the coming years and will save beer drinkers in particular £900 million. As a result of cuts and freezes since ending the beer duty escalator in 2013, beer duty is now at its lowest level in real terms since the 1990s. The Government has also announced it will reduce the duty on draught beer by 5% as part of alcohol duty reforms – cutting the duty on a pint of beer served in a pub by 3p.
The Government keeps all taxes under review and any announcements will be made at the next fiscal event.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a reformed business rate for pubs that is equitable to other small businesses.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The government is providing a new temporary relief worth almost £1.7 billion for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure businesses, resulting in over 90% of retail, hospitality and leisure businesses receiving at least a 50% reduction in their business rates bills in 2022-23.
We have already provided £16bn in support through the business rates system for Retail, Hospitality, and Leisure businesses during the pandemic – an unprecedented level of support for the high street.
Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) is available to businesses with a single property with a rateable value below the threshold of £15,000.