To match an exact phrase, use quotation marks around the search term. eg. "Parliamentary Estate". Use "OR" or "AND" as link words to form more complex queries.


Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments by exploring our subscription options to receive notifications direct to your inbox

Written Question
Families: Coronavirus
Tuesday 20th October 2020

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

What plans he has to provide additional fiscal support to families during the covid-19 outbreak.

Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

This Government is committed to doing whatever it takes to support families through the Covid-19 pandemic. That is why we have put in place an unprecedented package of support – including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, and the Job Support Scheme. In addition to these measures, the Government has introduced over £9bn of temporary welfare support – all helping to protect incomes, jobs, and support those most in need.


Written Question
Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund and Small Business Grants Fund: Exhibitions
Tuesday 14th July 2020

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether exhibition businesses are (a) covered by and (b) qualify for support from the (i) Small Business Grant Fund and (ii) the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund.

Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade

If an exhibition company meets the criteria for the Small Business Grant Fund or the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund, it can receive a grant from these schemes. Under the SBGF, businesses can receive a £10,000 grant per property, for each property in receipt of Small Business Rate Relief or Rural Rate Relief. Under the Retail, Hospitality or Leisure Grant Fund, businesses can receive a £10,000 grant per property, for each property occupied for retail, hospitality or leisure purposes with a rateable value of £15,000 or below and which is not in receipt of SBRR or RRR; and a £25,000 grant per property, for each property occupied for these purposes with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000.

The Government is aware that some small businesses have found themselves excluded from the existing business grants schemes because of the way they interact with the business rates system. That is why the Government has allocated up to an additional £617 million to Local Authorities to enable them to give discretionary grants to businesses in this situation. The Government’s intention is for Local Authorities to prioritise the following types of business when making discretionary grants:

  • Small businesses in shared offices or other flexible workspaces, for example industrial parks, science parks, incubators etc, which do not have their own business rates assessment;
  • Regular market traders who do not have their own business rates assessment;
  • B&Bs which pay Council Tax instead of business rates; and
  • Charity properties in receipt of charitable business rates relief which would otherwise have been eligible for Small Business Rates Relief or Rural Rate Relief

Exhibition companies may fall into one of the above categories. Local Authorities may also choose to pay grants to businesses outside of these priority groups, according to local economic need, so long as the business was trading on 11th March, and has not received any other grant funded by central Government (with the exception of grants from the SEISS).

Businesses which have not received a grant should have been able to benefit from other measures in the Chancellor’s unprecedented package of support for business, including:

  • An option to defer VAT payments by up to twelve months;
  • The Bounce Back Loan Scheme, which will ensure that small and micro businesses can quickly access loans of up to £50,000 which are 100 per cent guaranteed by the Government;
  • The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, now extended to cover all businesses including those which would be able to access commercial credit;
  • The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, to support businesses with their wage bills; and
  • The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, to provide support to the self-employed.

The Business Support website provides further information about how businesses can access the support that has been made available, who is eligible, and how to apply: https://www.businesssupport.gov.uk/coronavirus-business-support/.

In addition to these measures, the Chancellor announced further support for businesses at the Summer Economic Update, including the Jobs Retention Bonus, which will grant businesses £1,000 for each furloughed staff member that they bring back and keep employed until the end of January 2021, and a VAT cut for the hospitality and tourism sectors.


Written Question
Public Expenditure
Thursday 27th February 2020

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much money from the public purse will be allocated to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales under the Barnett consequentials following expenditure on High Speed Two.

Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The Barnett formula will be applied in the normal way on any planned changes in UK government departmental budgets, as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy.

Full details of any Barnett consequentials for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be set out at future fiscal events and spending reviews.


Written Question
High Speed 2 Railway Line: Costs
Friday 8th February 2019

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to publish his review of the costs of High Speed Two.

Answered by Elizabeth Truss

Government remains committed to delivering the HS2 programme in the most cost-efficient way possible and within the set funding envelope of £55.7bn.

We will conduct a departmental Spending Review later this year where all investments will be examined to ensure they are delivering good value for the public purse.
Written Question
VAT: Tax Evasion
Friday 11th May 2018

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many of the companies named in the dossier given to HMRC by Retailers Against VAT Abuse Schemes have (a) registered for VAT, (b) been investigated and (c) been prosecuted for VAT abuse.

Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

Currently 439 of the online sellers named by Retailers Against VAT Abuse Schemes are registered for VAT. HMRC has risk assessed all of the companies named and as a result 781 are either subject to or awaiting further investigation. The rest have been risk assessed as requiring no further action. There have been no prosecutions.


Written Question
Amazon: VAT
Friday 11th May 2018

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many notices HMRC have issued to alleged VAT fraudsters on Amazon that have neither responded nor paid any VAT.

Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

HMRC cannot comment on the affairs of individual taxpayers, as it has a duty to maintain taxpayer confidentiality.

However, between September 2016 and 31 March 2018, HMRC has issued a total of 2,048 notices to all online marketplaces.


Written Question
Redundancy Pay: Repayments
Monday 22nd January 2018

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what mechanisms exist to recover unauthorised redundancy payments made by a company funded by the Government through grant in aid.

Answered by Elizabeth Truss

Where payments are contractually committed, the terms of any possible recovery depend on the contract under which they are agreed.

Any unauthorised expenditure by a departmental arm’s-length body must be noted in the relevant department’s annual report and accounts. Any repayment of grant-in-aid by the arm’s-length body would be a matter to be resolved between the funding department and the arm’s-length body in question.


Written Question
Carillion: Insolvency
Friday 19th January 2018

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the financial effect on the High Speed Two project of Carillion entering liquidation; and if he will he publish that assessment.

Answered by Elizabeth Truss

HS2 Ltd has no direct contract with Carillion. Carillion was awarded two Main Works Civil Contracts as part of a joint venture with Kier and Eiffage, who have provided HS2 Ltd with assurances that, in the event of a member of the group being unable to deliver on its responsibilities, the remaining members, now Effiage and Keir, would fill the gap. HS2 Ltd is continuing to discuss with Kier and Eiffage the implementation of contingency plans. Work will continue as planned with no additional exposure to the taxpayer.


Written Question
CH2M Hill
Thursday 20th April 2017

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much funding has been paid to CH2M by (a) service provided and (b) project since 2005.

Answered by David Gauke

The information is not held centrally at the level of detail requested. Details of expenditure approvals for consultancy controls are published on: www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk Additionally, all new contracts over the value of £10,000 are published on Contracts Finder: https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder The full Cabinet Office Controls guidance can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-controls/cabinet-office-controls-guidance-version-40


Written Question
Holiday Accommodation: Tax Allowances
Friday 22nd January 2016

Asked by: Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to (a) make provision for non-EU furnished holiday let owners to benefit from the ability to offset finance costs, but not the additional reliefs that are available to EU furnished holiday let owners, or to extend the definition of a furnished holiday let to be include non-EU properties and enable access to all reliefs.

Answered by David Gauke

No.