Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to not require businesses who have yet to reopen and have no income to start contributing to the scheme from August 2020.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The furlough scheme will remain open until October. It is right that in the final months of this eight-month scheme, the Government asks employers to make a reasonable contribution towards their employees’ wages.
An early assessment of CJRS claims suggested that about 40% of employers had not made a claim for employer NICs costs or employer pension contributions and so were likely to be unaffected by the change in August, assuming their employment patterns did not change.
If an average claim lasted 8 months, the total cost of employer contributions would represent 5% of the gross employment costs an employer would have incurred had the employee not been furloughed.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme beyond the second grant for (a) musicians, (b) other performers and (c) other self-employed workers who remain unable to (i) work and (ii) work enough hours to earn their usual income as a result of covid-19 lockdown restrictions.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Chancellor of the Exchequer has said there will be no further extension or changes to the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS).
The SEISS will remain open for applications for the second and final grant until 19 October.
Those who require more support may be able to benefit from other elements of the comprehensive package of support for individuals and businesses.
This package includes Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support,?increased levels of Universal Credit, mortgage holidays, and other business support grants. More information about the full range of business support measures is available at
www.gov.uk/government/collections/financial-support-for-businesses-during-coronavirus-covid-19.
As the economy reopens, it is right that state support is reduced and the focus shifts to getting people back to work. On 8 July, the Government introduced the Plan for Jobs which will make available up to £30 billion to assist in creating, supporting and protecting jobs. The Plan includes the Kickstart Scheme, reduces the level of VAT for the hospitality and accommodation sector, and creates jobs through £8.6 billion of infrastructure, decarbonisation and maintenance projects. More information can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-plan-for-jobs-documents/a-plan-for-jobs-2020.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing targeted support beyond the second grant of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme for (a) musicians, (b) other performers and (c) other self-employed workers who remain unable to work as a result of covid-19 lockdown restrictions.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Chancellor of the Exchequer has said there will be no further extension or changes to the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS).
The SEISS will remain open for applications for the second and final grant until 19 October.
Those who require more support may be able to benefit from other elements of the comprehensive package of support for individuals and businesses.
This package includes Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support,?increased levels of Universal Credit, mortgage holidays, and other business support grants. More information about the full range of business support measures is available at
www.gov.uk/government/collections/financial-support-for-businesses-during-coronavirus-covid-19.
As the economy reopens, it is right that state support is reduced and the focus shifts to getting people back to work. On 8 July, the Government introduced the Plan for Jobs which will make available up to £30 billion to assist in creating, supporting and protecting jobs. The Plan includes the Kickstart Scheme, reduces the level of VAT for the hospitality and accommodation sector, and creates jobs through £8.6 billion of infrastructure, decarbonisation and maintenance projects. More information can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-plan-for-jobs-documents/a-plan-for-jobs-2020.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending business rates relief to the events sector.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has provided enhanced support through business rates relief to businesses occupying properties used for retail, hospitality and leisure.
A range of other measures to support all businesses, including events companies, has also been made available. On 8 July the Chancellor set out a package of measures to support jobs across the UK, including a Job Retention Bonus to help firms keep furloughed workers and a new £2 billion Kickstart Scheme to create hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people. The Chancellor has also announced a cut in VAT to 5% for accommodation, attractions and the hospitality sector.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the personal protective equipment VAT zero rating beyond 31 October 2020.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The temporary zero-rate of VAT on sales of Personal Protective Equipment for protection from infection has been extended to 31 October 2020. This extension forms part of the Government’s response to the coronavirus emergency.
The Government has taken extraordinary action to introduce this zero-rate. A temporary measure is appropriate to ensure the widest range of businesses, charities and individuals can benefit from this tax relief during the coronavirus emergency. The Government will continue to respond dynamically to this emergency, and will take all necessary steps in the future.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of Beer Duty receipts were paid by small breweries that produce no more than 60,000 hectolitres of beer per year, in each of the last three years.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
HMRC publishes quarterly statistics of beer duty receipts, as well as quantities of production. Information on the proportion of annual receipts that are paid by small brewers producing no more than 60,000 hectolitres of beer per year is not readily available.
HMRC publishes annual statistics on small brewers reliefs, this includes the number of people claiming the relief and the cost of the relief. Information on proportion of claimants receiving the maximum 50 per cent and at least 25 per cent reduction in their beer duty rate is not readily available.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of small breweries received the maximum 50 per cent small breweries relief from their beer duty rate in each of the last three years.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
HMRC publishes quarterly statistics of beer duty receipts, as well as quantities of production. Information on the proportion of annual receipts that are paid by small brewers producing no more than 60,000 hectolitres of beer per year is not readily available.
HMRC publishes annual statistics on small brewers reliefs, this includes the number of people claiming the relief and the cost of the relief. Information on proportion of claimants receiving the maximum 50 per cent and at least 25 per cent reduction in their beer duty rate is not readily available.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of small breweries in receipt of small breweries relief received at least a 25 per cent reduction in their beer duty rate, in the latest period for which figures are available.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
HMRC publishes quarterly statistics of beer duty receipts, as well as quantities of production. Information on the proportion of annual receipts that are paid by small brewers producing no more than 60,000 hectolitres of beer per year is not readily available.
HMRC publishes annual statistics on small brewers reliefs, this includes the number of people claiming the relief and the cost of the relief. Information on proportion of claimants receiving the maximum 50 per cent and at least 25 per cent reduction in their beer duty rate is not readily available.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what policy changes he plans to make in response to the findings of a Federation of Wholesale Distributors survey that (a) 50 per cent of the 150 food and drink wholesale businesses surveyed, all of which have a turnover of £45 million or lower, are in danger of going into liquidation in the next three months to a year, (b) 70 per cent of those respondents supply food and drink to schools, care homes, hospitals and (c) £270 million worth of public sector contracts are at risk without urgent financial support; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The Government has announced unprecedented support for business and workers to protect them against the current economic emergency including almost £300 billion of guarantees – equivalent to 15% of UK GDP. Local Authorities (LAs) can choose to make discretionary grants to businesses in supply chains, like wholesale distributors, if they feel there is a particular local economic need. The Government has allocated up to £617 million to LAs to enable them to give discretionary grants to businesses in this situation. LAs may choose to focus payments on those priority groups which are most relevant to their local areas or to businesses outside of these priority groups, so long as the business was trading on 11th March, and has not received any other cash grant funded by central Government.
Wholesale distributors continue to have access to other elements of the Government’s unprecedented package of support for business, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) and the four government-backed loan schemes for firms of all sizes. The Business Support website provides further information about how businesses can access the support that has been made available, who is eligible and how to apply - https://www.gov.uk/business-coronavirus-support-finder.
On 11 May the Government published its COVID-19 recovery strategy which sets out our plan for moving to the next phase of our response. The strategy sets out a cautious roadmap for easing existing measures in a safe and measured way. On 15 June the non-essential retail sector reopened. The roadmap will be kept constantly under review, and we will continue to work hard to support business and workers as the situation evolves.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will extend the application of business rates relief to food and drink wholesalers who supply hospitals, schools, care homes and the hospitality industry.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has provided enhanced support through business rates relief to businesses occupying properties used for retail, hospitality and leisure given the direct and acute impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on those sectors.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has published guidance for local authorities on eligible properties. As set out in the guidance, support is targeted at premises that are wholly or mainly being used as shops, restaurants, cafes, drinking establishments, cinemas and live music venues; for assembly and leisure; or as hotels, guest and boarding premises and self-catering accommodation. It is for local authorities to determine eligibility for reliefs, having regard to guidance issued by the Government.
A range of further measures to support all businesses, including those not eligible for the business rates holiday, such as wholesalers, has also been made available.