Asked by: George Howarth (Labour - Knowsley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of private landlords who have used a buy-to-let mortgage since the first buy-to-let mortgage was issued in 1996.
Answered by John Glen
According to data from UK Finance, 4.1 million buy-to-let mortgages have been advanced since 2000. However, it is not possible to determine if any given buy-to-let mortgage has been given to a landlord who has taken out other buy-to-let mortgages, so it is not possible to provide a number of landlords for this period. This figure includes both total purchases and remortgages. Figures prior to this date are not available on a comparable basis.Asked by: George Howarth (Labour - Knowsley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the value is of outstanding mortgages relating to buy-to-let properties in the UK.
Answered by John Glen
According to the latest data held by UK Finance, as of August 2021, the value of the buy-to-let mortgage stock in the UK was £281.1 billion.
Asked by: George Howarth (Labour - Knowsley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to reduce the deficit projected in Budget 2021 (a) through taxation, (b) from issuing extra currency, (c) from the proposed recovery bond and (d) via other forms of government-issued bonds.
Answered by John Glen
Borrowing in 2021-22 is the second highest peacetime level on record, coming only after 2020-21 – it is clearly not sustainable to continue borrowing at record levels indefinitely.
The OBR forecast shows that the medium-term outlook for the public finances has returned to a more sustainable path, supported by the fiscal repair measures set out in the Budget.
For example, the income tax Personal Allowance and higher rate threshold will be uprated in line with CPI as planned in April 2021, then maintained at that level until April 2026. In 2023, the main rate of corporation tax, paid on company profits, will increase to 25%.
Regarding issuing extra currency, the actual demand for banknotes and coins issued into circulation is determined by demand from UK banks and the Post Office – i.e. currency is issued to meet market demand and not to have any effect on the public finances.
Government bonds (called ‘gilts’ in the UK) are issued to finance the difference between Exchequer incomings and outgoings rather than being a tool utilised to reduce government deficits.
Asked by: George Howarth (Labour - Knowsley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what tax incentives are available to (a) employer share ownerships plans, (b) value workers' cooperatives and (c) other forms of mutual employment and membership.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Government offers four tax-advantaged employee share schemes: Share Incentive Plans (SIPs), the Save As You Earn (SAYE) scheme, Enterprise Management Incentives (EMI), and the Company Share Option Plan (CSOP). These schemes offer a range of Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax reliefs on qualifying shares. Employee Ownership Trusts (EOTs) promote indirect employee share ownership through offering similar tax reliefs to employees, with EOTs holding shares on their behalf. EOTs also offer an Income Tax exemption on bonus payments to employees.
While there are no statutory Income Tax or Corporation Tax incentives specifically for mutual organisations, the Government recognises their value in delivering the services their members and communities need.