Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of setting up an emergency fund to support the customers of the failed Safe Hands Funeral Plans who may fall into funeral poverty as a result of that company's collapse.
Answered by John Glen
In January 2021, the government legislated to bring all pre-paid funeral plan providers and intermediaries within the regulatory remit of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) from 29 July 2022. When FCA regulation takes effect, funeral plan providers will need to be authorised by the FCA in order to enter into or carry out funeral plan contracts.
Safe Hands Plans has recently gone into administration. The government understands that this development will be concerning for customers of Safe Hands and continues to monitor the implementation of regulation in this sector closely.
Dignity’s recent commitment to provide ongoing support to Safe Hands’ customers for the next six months is welcome. This will ensure that any planholders who pass away during this time will receive a funeral without any additional charge.
It is unfortunate but unavoidable that bringing a previously unregulated sector into regulation – whatever form that may take – creates a possibility that some providers are not able to meet the threshold for authorisation. However, a well-regulated market should promote effective competition and drive better outcomes for consumers in the long-term.
Where a provider is unable to obtain FCA authorisation because of underlying issues, it is important to understand that this is not an issue created by bringing the sector into regulation. Rather, bringing the sector into regulation exposes these unsustainable business models and prevents these problems from getting worse.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the details of any events any events organised by the World Economic Forum that he has participated in during the last year.
Answered by John Glen
The Chancellor of the Exchequer has not participated in any event organised by the World Economic Forum over the last year.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the New Economics Foundation of 14 March 2022 that by April 2022, more than one in two children will be in households with incomes below the minimum income standard.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Government is committed to supporting all groups in society, including those on the lowest incomes. This is why we have put in place a strong welfare safety net that helps people who are facing hardship and are unable to support themselves financially – we are providing £240 billion of support through the welfare system, including £41 billion on Universal Credit and £105 billion through the State Pension.
In the long term, we know that the best strategy to sustainably reduce poverty and increase people’s incomes is to help them into work. That is why the government is investing more than £6 billion in DWP labour market support over the next three years to help people move into, and progress in work. This builds on the success of the Plan for Jobs, with over 2 million fewer people expected to be unemployed than previously thought. In addition to this, we have taken action to make work pay by cutting the Universal Credit taper rate from 63p to 55p, and increasing Universal Credit work allowances by £500 per year, as well as increasing the National Living Wage (NLW) by 6.6% to £9.50 an hour for workers aged 23 and over in April 2022 which will benefit more than 2 million workers.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the New Economics Foundation of 14 March 2022 that by April 2022, more than one in three households will have incomes below the minimum income standard.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Government is committed to supporting all groups in society, including those on the lowest incomes. This is why we have put in place a strong welfare safety net that helps people who are facing hardship and are unable to support themselves financially – we are providing £240 billion of support through the welfare system, including £41 billion on Universal Credit and £105 billion through the State Pension.
In the long term, we know that the best strategy to sustainably reduce poverty and increase people’s incomes is to help them into work. That is why the government is investing more than £6 billion in DWP labour market support over the next three years to help people move into, and progress in work. This builds on the success of the Plan for Jobs, with over 2 million fewer people expected to be unemployed than previously thought. In addition to this, we have taken action to make work pay by cutting the Universal Credit taper rate from 63p to 55p, and increasing Universal Credit work allowances by £500 per year, as well as increasing the National Living Wage (NLW) by 6.6% to £9.50 an hour for workers aged 23 and over in April 2022 which will benefit more than 2 million workers.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the New Economics Foundation of 14 March 2022, that by April 2022, 5.2 million people will be living below the minimum income standard compared to prior to the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Government is committed to supporting all groups in society, including those on the lowest incomes. This is why we have put in place a strong welfare safety net that helps people who are facing hardship and are unable to support themselves financially – we are providing £240 billion of support through the welfare system, including £41 billion on Universal Credit and £105 billion through the State Pension.
In the long term, we know that the best strategy to sustainably reduce poverty and increase people’s incomes is to help them into work. That is why the government is investing more than £6 billion in DWP labour market support over the next three years to help people move into, and progress in work. This builds on the success of the Plan for Jobs, with over 2 million fewer people expected to be unemployed than previously thought. In addition to this, we have taken action to make work pay by cutting the Universal Credit taper rate from 63p to 55p, and increasing Universal Credit work allowances by £500 per year, as well as increasing the National Living Wage (NLW) by 6.6% to £9.50 an hour for workers aged 23 and over in April 2022 which will benefit more than 2 million workers.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the Resolution Foundation of 14 March 2022 that rising food and energy prices mean inflation could reach over ten per cent for the poorest decile of households in 2022.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Government recognises the challenge that many are facing with the cost of living and is committed to supporting all groups in society, including those on the lowest incomes.
This is why the Government has announced a package of support to help households with rising energy bills, worth £9.1 billion in 2022-23. This includes a £200 discount on their energy bill this Autumn for domestic electricity customers in Great Britain, a £150 non-repayable rebate in Council Tax bills for all households in Bands A-D in England and a £144 million of discretionary funding for Local Authorities to support households who need support but are not eligible for the Council Tax rebate.
This is on top of existing support for households with the cost of energy bills, such as the Warm Home Discount, the Winter Fuel Payment and the Cold Weather Payment. It also builds on the £500m Household Support Fund, which is helping vulnerable households with the cost of essentials such as food, clothing and utilities.
This is in addition to helping people get into work and progress through the Plan for Jobs, and increasing the National Living Wage by 6.6% to £9.50 an hour.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential revenues available to the Exchequer through increasing corporation tax for North Sea oil and gas companies and energy transmission and distribution companies.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Government does not typically provide assessments of changes to ring fence corporation tax, or corporation tax by sector, and does not propose doing so in this case.
The Government places additional taxes on the extraction of oil and gas, with companies engaged in the production of oil and gas on the UK Continental Shelf subject to headline tax rates on their profits that are currently more than double those paid by other businesses. To date, the sector has paid more than £375 billion in production taxes.
All taxes are kept under review and any changes are considered and announced by the Chancellor.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of potential revenues available to the Exchequer through an increase in dividend taxation for North Sea oil and gas companies and energy transmission and distribution companies.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Government does not typically provide assessments of changes to dividend tax by sector and does not propose doing so in this case.
The Government already places additional taxes on the extraction of oil and gas, with companies engaged in the production of oil and gas on the UK Continental Shelf subject to headline tax rates on their profits that are currently more than double those paid by other businesses. To date, the sector has paid more than £375 billion in production taxes.
The Government keeps all taxes under review and any changes are considered and announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Normanton and Hemsworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to increase pay in real terms for public sector workers.
Answered by Simon Clarke
The Government recognises that public sector workers play a vital role in the running of our economy, and in delivering our world class public services.
Spending Review 2021 confirmed that public sector workers will see pay rises across the whole Spending Review period (22/23-24/25).
Pay for most frontline workforces - including nurses, teachers and armed forces - is set through an independent Pay Review Body process. Pay Review Bodies will consider a range of evidence when forming their recommendations, including the need to recruit and retain suitably able and qualified people; the financial circumstances of the country; the Government’s policies for improving public services; and the Government’s inflation target. They will consider the whole remuneration package of those working in the public sector when forming their recommendations, including substantially more generous pensions than are found in the private sector.
The Government will carefully consider all recommendations from the Pay Review Bodies once their final reports are submitted.