Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will allocate funds to compensate victims of the infected blood scandal in the forthcoming Budget.
Answered by Laura Trott - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
The Chancellor will set out his Budget on 6 March.
The Government has accepted the moral case for compensation and acknowledged that justice needs to be delivered for the victims. The Government will respond to the Inquiry's recommendations following the publication of the final report in May.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has held meetings with the devolved Administrations on the infected blood (a) inquiry and (b) compensation framework since 1 January 2023.
Answered by John Glen
As the Minister for the Cabinet Office set out in his answers of 24 April and 10 May, the Government is committed to liaising with the Devolved Administrations on this issue, and this has continued at official level by the Cabinet Office following the close joint working that supported the delivery of interim compensation in October last year.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will list (a) dates and (b) attendees of his Department's meetings on the infected blood (i) inquiry and (ii) compensation framework since January 1st 2023.
Answered by John Glen
As the Minister for the Cabinet Office set out in his statement of 19 April, the Government welcome the publication of the infected blood inquiry’s second interim report, and is considering its recommendations carefully.
HM Treasury officials are working closely with colleagues in the Cabinet Office and the Department of Health and Social Care, among others, who are leading on the consideration and analysis of the recommendations.
As the Minister for the Cabinet Office set out in his answer to your question of 20 April, Ministers and officials at all levels meet regularly to discuss this issue. My officials and I are involved in those discussions, and will continue to be so.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimates his department has made of the cost to the public purse of the compensation scheme for victims of the infected blood scandal.
Answered by John Glen
As the Minister for the Cabinet Office set out in his statement of 19 April, the Government welcome the publication of the infected blood inquiry’s second interim report, and is considering its recommendations carefully.
HM Treasury officials are working closely with colleagues in the Cabinet Office and the Department of Health and Social Care, among others, who are leading on the consideration and analysis of the recommendations.
As the Minister for the Cabinet Office set out in his answer to your question of 20 April, Ministers and officials at all levels meet regularly to discuss this issue. My officials and I are involved in those discussions, and will continue to be so.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps he has taken to help ensure value for money in public spending.
Answered by Simon Clarke
Spending Review 2021 placed a renewed emphasis on ensuring that every pound of taxpayers’ money is spent well and focused on the areas that make the most difference to people’s daily lives. The government set clear outcomes for what spending will buy; ensured that all decisions are informed by the best quality evidence; encouraged joint working between departments; and took further action to drive out low value or inefficient spend.
At the Spring Statement, the government also set out plans to tackle waste and inefficiency across the public sector through a comprehensive efficiency agenda. This includes a new Public Sector Fraud Authority that will tackle fraud and a further £12 million investment in HMRC to help prevent error and fraud in tax credits. Work on ensuring value for money is being driven by the Chancellor-chaired Committee on Efficiency and Value for Money.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps he is taking to help reduce the impact of inflation on households' cost of living.
Answered by Simon Clarke
Millions of households across the UK are struggling to make their incomes stretch to cover the rising cost of living. The government is providing over £15bn of additional support, targeted particularly on those with the greatest need. This package builds on the over £22bn announced previously, with government support for the cost of living now totalling over £37bn this year.
The government is helping all domestic electricity customers in Great Britain to cope with the impact of higher energy bills, with £400 off their bills from October through the expansion of the Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS). This is a doubling of the £200 of support announced in February, and there will no longer be any repayments. The government will deliver equivalent support to people in Northern Ireland.
The government is supporting over 8 million households across the UK in receipt of means tested benefits with a one-off Cost of Living Payment of £650, paid in two instalments.
The government is giving additional UK-wide support to help disabled people with the particular extra costs they will face, with 6 million people who receive non-means tested disability benefits receiving a one-off disability Cost of Living Payment of £150.
The government is also providing extra support to help all pensioners across the UK stay warm this winter. Over eight million pensioner households will receive an extra one-off £300 this year to help them cover the rising cost of energy this winter.
For households that are not eligible for Cost of Living Payments or for families that still need additional support; the government is providing an extra £500 million of local support, via the Household Support Fund. The Fund will be extended from this October to March 2023, bringing total funding for the scheme to £1.5 billion.
Millions of the most vulnerable households will receive at least £1,200 of one-off support in total this year to help with the cost of living.
The government is also committed to tackling the underlying, long-term factors driving cost of living challenges. This includes: helping people into work and supporting them to keep more of what they earn; solidifying our supply chains and boosting our energy security; and driving economic growth through a lower tax, dynamic market economy.