Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed Landfill Tax reforms on (a) the supply of UK-produced titanium dioxide and (b) the resilience of UK supply chains.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recently consulted on proposals to reform Landfill
Tax following a call for evidence in 2021 under the previous government, to ensure the regime remains effective in encouraging waste to be diverted away from landfill and to support the government’s circular economy objectives. The consultation closed on 28 July and the government is considering responses and will set out next steps in due course.
As part of the consultation, the Government has received a wide range of views from stakeholders, including representatives from the titanium dioxide production sector.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of removing the quarry exemption and lower rate of Landfill Tax on the number of (a) operating quarries in England and (b) people employed in the aggregates sector in England.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recently consulted on proposals to reform Landfill
Tax following a call for evidence in 2021 under the previous government, to ensure the regime remains effective in encouraging waste to be diverted away from landfill and to support the government’s circular economy objectives. The consultation closed on 28 July and the government is considering responses and will set out next steps in due course.
As part of the consultation, the Government has received a wide range of views from stakeholders, including representatives from the mineral products and aggregates sector.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has conducted an impact assessment on the potential impact of removing the quarry exemption for Landfill Tax on the (a) aggregates and (b) mineral products sectors.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recently consulted on proposals to reform Landfill
Tax following a call for evidence in 2021 under the previous government, to ensure the regime remains effective in encouraging waste to be diverted away from landfill and to support the government’s circular economy objectives. The consultation closed on 28 July and the government is considering responses and will set out next steps in due course.
As part of the consultation, the Government has received a wide range of views from stakeholders, including representatives from the mineral products and aggregates sector.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2025 to Question 77620 Self-assessment: Fines, what the average response time was of HMRC’s dedicated support service to those facing personal difficulties over the latest 12 months for which data is available.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC are committed to being aware of customers’ wider personal situations and will provide extra support if customers need it, as set out in the HMRC Charter.
All HMRC advisers are given training and guidance on how to identify customers who need extra help and how to either provide tailored support themselves or refer the customer to HMRC’s specialist extra support provision. HMRC increased the size of its Extra Support Team (EST) by 28% over 2024 to 2025. In 2024 to 2025, HMRC’s dedicated Customer Service EST helped over 150,000 customers in vulnerable circumstances.
The average response time for those contacting the EST in the past twelve months (October 2024- September 2025) was:
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2025 to Question 77620 on Self-assessment: Fines, if he will set out for (a) late-filing of Self Assessment forms and (b) late payment of Income Tax (i) how many penalties were cancelled, (ii) the average cost per cancellation, (iii) the average length of time taken by HMRC to cancel a penalty and (iv) the average value of penalties cancelled in each year since 2011.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Data on the average cost per cancellation and the average time to cancel penalties is not available.
Final data on the late payment of income tax and the average value of penalties cancelled in each year since 2011 cannot be provided as returns continue to be issued, received and cancelled for several years after the filing return
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2025 to Question 77620 on Self-assessment: Fines, whether her Department plans to consult on the new penalty regime for the (a) late filing of Self Assessment returns and (b) late payment of Income Tax; and when she plan to introduce the new regimes.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The previous government held three public consultations between 2016 and 2018 on reforms to late filing and late payment penalties.
Following this, penalty reform was introduced for VAT customers in 2023 as part of Making Tax Digital. The same approach will be extended to Income Tax Self Assessment customers as follows:
The government will confirm in due course when the remaining Income Tax Self Assessment customers will move to the new penalty approach.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the official statistics entitled 2025 HMRC statistics announcements, published on 8 October 2025, what assessment he has made of the reasons for HMRC’s error in recording VAT cash receipts outturn.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC corrected the error in their VAT cash receipts which impacted provisional figures from April 2025 to August 2025. The impact of the correction was an upward revision of VAT cash receipts by £2.4 billion (approximately 3% of year-to-date VAT receipts). There was no impact on earlier years. The revision was published in an exceptional release on 8 October 2025. This revision also means the ONS published revised borrowing figures, which for 2025/26 reduced by £2.0 billion.
I have been given assurance from HMRC that the revision does not affect any interactions with taxpayers and that HMRC will be conducting a robust review to prevent it happening again.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed higher business rates multiplier on employment in the retail sector.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is creating a fairer business rates system that protects the high street, supports investment, and is fit for the 21st century.
As set out at Autumn Budget 2024, the Government will introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with ratable values (RVs) below £500,000 from 2026-27. This permanent tax cut will ensure they benefit from much-needed certainty and support.
This tax cut must be sustainably funded, and so the Government will introduce a higher rate on the most valuable properties in 2026/27 - those with RVs of £500,000 and above. These represent less than one per cent of all properties, but cover the majority of large distribution warehouses, including those used by online giants.
The final design, including the rates, for the new business rates multipliers will be announced at Budget 2025, so that the Government can factor the revaluation outcomes and broader economic and fiscal context into decision-making. When the new multipliers are set, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis of the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to prevent people who owe no tax from being charged HMRC late-filing penalties.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The tax system contains obligations, set out in law, to ensure that HMRC can collect the correct tax to fund vital public services. HMRC is bound by law to apply penalties where customers do not meet these obligations. Penalties also help to reassure customers who comply with their obligations that HMRC are applying the rules fairly and consistently.
For Self Assessment (SA), HMRC requires the information from customers in their tax returns to determine whether they have Income Tax to pay. Even if a customer has no tax to pay, the information provided can ensure taxpayers receive the benefits to which they are entitled, such as Tax-Free Childcare. The current policy and legislation on SA penalties has been in place since 2011.
The government will soon introduce a new penalty regime for late filing of SA returns and late payment of income tax. As well as reducing the penalties a customer can accumulate for filing late, this will introduce a further safeguard so people will not receive a financial penalty for a single failure to file on time. The penalties will focus on people who repeatedly file late.
Where HMRC charges a penalty, a customer can appeal. HMRC will cancel any penalties where they accept that a taxpayer no longer needs to be in SA or has a reasonable excuse for not filing their return on time.
HMRC regularly reviews its guidance and communications, including making it easier for customers to explain why they were unable to file their return and to inform HMRC if they no longer need to be in SA.
HMRC has dedicated support in place for those facing personal difficulties and encourages anyone struggling to meet their obligations to contact them as soon as possible by phone or online.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) abolishing and (b) capping the penalty for a single missed tax return for people earning less than £50,000.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The tax system contains obligations, set out in law, to ensure that HMRC can collect the correct tax to fund vital public services. HMRC is bound by law to apply penalties where customers do not meet these obligations. Penalties also help to reassure customers who comply with their obligations that HMRC are applying the rules fairly and consistently.
For Self Assessment (SA), HMRC requires the information from customers in their tax returns to determine whether they have Income Tax to pay. Even if a customer has no tax to pay, the information provided can ensure taxpayers receive the benefits to which they are entitled, such as Tax-Free Childcare. The current policy and legislation on SA penalties has been in place since 2011.
The government will soon introduce a new penalty regime for late filing of SA returns and late payment of income tax. As well as reducing the penalties a customer can accumulate for filing late, this will introduce a further safeguard so people will not receive a financial penalty for a single failure to file on time. The penalties will focus on people who repeatedly file late.
Where HMRC charges a penalty, a customer can appeal. HMRC will cancel any penalties where they accept that a taxpayer no longer needs to be in SA or has a reasonable excuse for not filing their return on time.
HMRC regularly reviews its guidance and communications, including making it easier for customers to explain why they were unable to file their return and to inform HMRC if they no longer need to be in SA.
HMRC has dedicated support in place for those facing personal difficulties and encourages anyone struggling to meet their obligations to contact them as soon as possible by phone or online.