Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what powers the Taxpayer Protection Task Force will have.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Taxpayer Protection Taskforce is made up of 1,265 FTE officers of HMRC, will be in place for 2021/22 through to 2022/23, and will extend and expand the number of people HMRC have deployed on compliance activity since HMRC had powers to investigate claims.
Officers will have access to, and apply where appropriate, the normal enquiry, penalty and information powers of HMRC. These include legal powers to carry out civil investigations into suspected CJRS fraud, which were granted when the Finance Act received Royal Assent on 22 July 2020.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
What steps his Department is taking to increase funding for UK infrastructure.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government is committed to ensuring that businesses and infrastructure projects continue to have access to the finance they need.
Government investment in economic infrastructure will be £27 billion in 2021-22. The Spring Budget set out further details on the new UK Infrastructure Bank.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of trading platforms blocking retail investors from trading GME and AMC stocks while hedge funds have been permitted to continue to trade freely.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is the UK’s financial markets conduct regulator and is responsible for protecting consumers, ensuring market integrity and promoting effective competition. As set out in the FCA’s statement of 29 January, broking firms are not obliged to offer trading facilities to clients and may withdraw or suspend services if it is necessary or prudent to do so. The FCA’s statement also said that they would take appropriate action wherever they see evidence of UK firms or individuals causing harm to UK consumers or markets.
The Government recognises that the pace and creativity of innovation in UK financial services creates new opportunities for businesses and consumers to participate in markets through technologies such as app-based platforms. However, investors should be aware that investing in securities comes with risks. The FCA’s statement of 29 January warned consumers that any losses that result from such investments are unlikely to be covered under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) deferring the re-introduction of Crown Preference for 12 months and (b) capping the amount of reserves which will go to cover Crown Preference to a maximum of £1 million.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government’s reforms to HMRC’s preferential creditor status do not restore full “Crown Preference”. The Government has taken a proportionate approach, applying changes only to taxes paid in good faith by employees and customers, but held temporarily by the business, including Pay as You Earn (PAYE) Income Tax and VAT. This balances the interests of taxpayers, the Exchequer and other creditors. These reforms are not expected to have a significant impact on financial institutions, the lending market or the wider economy.
Businesses have had ample time to prepare for the changes. These reforms were first announced in 2018, and implementation has already been delayed from April 2020 to December 2020. The tax businesses temporarily hold on behalf of their customers and staff is not business income. It is right that the reforms do not include a “cap”, but apply to all relevant tax debts held temporarily by the business.