Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the source of the information was regarding fraudulent tax credit claims passed from HM Revenue and Customs to Concentrix.
Answered by Jane Ellison
HM Revenue and Customs provided cases to Concentrix where there was an indication that there may be something wrong with the tax credits claimed. Concentrix then applied their own data profiling techniques as well as data matching to identify claims that involved an increased likelihood of error or fraud. The detailed process for selecting claims for Concentrix compliance interventions is set out in sections A9 and A10 of the “specifications of requirement” annex of the Concentrix contract which can be found at: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/85d1b730-5e4e-4be8-ae4c-3ac1f359afc7
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to limit the level of overdraft charges for people in financial difficulties.
Answered by Simon Kirby
It is important that overdraft charges are fair and that customers can access clear information about overdrafts.
The Competition and Markets Authority’s investigation into retail banking is considering the issue of overdrafts. The Government stands ready to take action after the CMA publishes its report.
And we have already taken steps to support customers in financial difficulty. For example, truly fee-free basic bank accounts have been available since January 2016.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of regulation of banking sector.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
Since 2010 the government has:
legislated for the ring-fencing of large banks’ retail arms from their investment banking arms;
ensured that the senior managers of banks are held accountable for their decisions; and
put the Bank of England back in charge of bank prudential regulation.
The IMF noted in its recent Article IV concluding statement that “owing to a large extent to a wave of welcome regulatory reforms since the crisis, the main parts of the UK financial system appear resilient”.
The Government agrees with the IMF’s assessment.