Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to make provision for farmers who were eligible for Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 Window 2 and intended to apply but did not submit an application before the window closed on 22 September 2026.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises the disappointment of farmers who intended to apply for SFI26 but did not submit an application before Window 2 closed. The window remained open until sufficient applications had been received to allocate the available funding. Eligible farmers who did not obtain an SFI26 agreement will have another opportunity to apply in 2027. For those with a recognised technical issue that prevented them from applying, applications may continue to be considered under the arrangements set out by Defra and the Rural Payments Agency.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department made of anticipated demand for Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 Window 2 before applications opened on 22 September 2026; and whether that estimate took into consideration that the available budget would be allocated on the first day.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra expected strong initial demand for Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 Window 2 and made clear before the window opened that its duration would depend on the rate of applications. In anticipation of high demand, Ministers allocated an additional £50 million before opening and subsequently added a further £20 million, bringing Window 2 funding to £253 million. Around 12,200 applications were submitted. The Government kept the window open until sufficient applications had been received to allocate the available funding.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many charities were required to submit Corporation Tax returns that gave rise to Corporation Tax liability in each of the last five years for which data are available.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The approximate number of charities that were issued a notice to file a Corporation Tax return in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities issued a notice to file (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 16,700 |
2021/22 | 18,000 |
2022/23 | 17,550 |
2023/24 | 18,800 |
2024/25 | 20,100 |
The approximate number of companies identified as charities that had late-filing penalties charged in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with penalties charged (rounded to the nearest 50) |
|
2020/21 | 1,300 |
|
2021/22 | 1,550 |
|
2022/23 | 1,600 |
|
2023/24 | 2,250 |
|
2024/25 | 3,450 |
|
The number of charities that had a Corporation Tax liability in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with Corporation Tax liability (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 350 |
2021/22 | 300 |
2022/23 | 300 |
2023/24 | 300 |
2024/25 | 300 |
HMRC keeps Corporation Tax administration for charities under review.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many charities were issued penalties for late filing or non-submission of Corporation Tax returns in each of the last five years for which data are available.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The approximate number of charities that were issued a notice to file a Corporation Tax return in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities issued a notice to file (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 16,700 |
2021/22 | 18,000 |
2022/23 | 17,550 |
2023/24 | 18,800 |
2024/25 | 20,100 |
The approximate number of companies identified as charities that had late-filing penalties charged in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with penalties charged (rounded to the nearest 50) |
|
2020/21 | 1,300 |
|
2021/22 | 1,550 |
|
2022/23 | 1,600 |
|
2023/24 | 2,250 |
|
2024/25 | 3,450 |
|
The number of charities that had a Corporation Tax liability in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with Corporation Tax liability (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 350 |
2021/22 | 300 |
2022/23 | 300 |
2023/24 | 300 |
2024/25 | 300 |
HMRC keeps Corporation Tax administration for charities under review.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many UK based charities were asked to file Corporation Tax returns in each of the last five years for which data are available.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The approximate number of charities that were issued a notice to file a Corporation Tax return in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities issued a notice to file (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 16,700 |
2021/22 | 18,000 |
2022/23 | 17,550 |
2023/24 | 18,800 |
2024/25 | 20,100 |
The approximate number of companies identified as charities that had late-filing penalties charged in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with penalties charged (rounded to the nearest 50) |
|
2020/21 | 1,300 |
|
2021/22 | 1,550 |
|
2022/23 | 1,600 |
|
2023/24 | 2,250 |
|
2024/25 | 3,450 |
|
The number of charities that had a Corporation Tax liability in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with Corporation Tax liability (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 350 |
2021/22 | 300 |
2022/23 | 300 |
2023/24 | 300 |
2024/25 | 300 |
HMRC keeps Corporation Tax administration for charities under review.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what work HMRC is undertaking to simplify corporation tax administration for charities.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The approximate number of charities that were issued a notice to file a Corporation Tax return in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities issued a notice to file (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 16,700 |
2021/22 | 18,000 |
2022/23 | 17,550 |
2023/24 | 18,800 |
2024/25 | 20,100 |
The approximate number of companies identified as charities that had late-filing penalties charged in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with penalties charged (rounded to the nearest 50) |
|
2020/21 | 1,300 |
|
2021/22 | 1,550 |
|
2022/23 | 1,600 |
|
2023/24 | 2,250 |
|
2024/25 | 3,450 |
|
The number of charities that had a Corporation Tax liability in each of the five tax years to 2024/25 is:
Tax Year | Charities with Corporation Tax liability (rounded to the nearest 50) |
2020/21 | 350 |
2021/22 | 300 |
2022/23 | 300 |
2023/24 | 300 |
2024/25 | 300 |
HMRC keeps Corporation Tax administration for charities under review.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to replace the Points of Light Award.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government wants to recognise the outstanding contribution of volunteers and encourage all to be involved in delivering positive change. The Points of Light programme closed in 2024. While
individual volunteers are recognised through the Honours system, and groups can be recognised through the King’s Award for Voluntary Service, there is consideration to replace the Points of Light
programme with a similar scheme.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will guarantee that planned reductions in civil service headcount in his Department will not result in a reduction in the number of Defence Driving Examiners available to conduct military driving tests.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
There are currently no plans to reduce the number of Civil Service Defence Driving Examiners. Since April 2026, all Defence Driving Examiner posts have been established as full-time Civil Service roles, enabling Service personnel to remain focused on their primary operational duties.
The Department will continue to ensure that Defence driving test capacity is maintained to meet operational requirements.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he will take in response to Capita's performance of the Civil Service Pension Scheme.
Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Cabinet Office awarded Capita the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme in November 2023 under the previous government. The current delays facing scheme members are entirely unacceptable, and this Government has taken firm action to resolve them through a clear recovery plan with strict delivery milestones. We have deployed additional resources to expedite priority cases, ensuring that serving and former staff receive the high standard of service they deserve. Regular progress updates remain available to members via the pension portal and GOV.UK.
While Capita committed to a complete return to standard contractual service levels by the end of June 2026, they have failed to meet this critical milestone. The Government is taking robust action to hold Capita to account. This includes withholding £9.9 million in contract payments for undelivered milestones, alongside confirmation that the Government surge team costs will be recovered directly from Capita.
To enforce strict compliance, independent auditors are being deployed to conduct a technical systems review, and an on-the-ground Remedial Adviser is being appointed at Capita’s expense. Further commercial, legal, and operational options remain on the table during the consideration of long-term structural delivery options.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Invite to Offer stage of negotiations will open before the end of 2026 for businesses shortlisted under the second Hydrogen Allocation Round.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We are working hard across government to start the Invite to Offer stage of the second Hydrogen Allocation Round (HAR2) as soon as possible and will be in touch with projects when this commences. Contract awards for successful projects will follow shortly afterwards.
We understand that many projects are at critical stages, and that certainty is important to support business planning, resource management and engagement with third parties.