Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether, if he will extend the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme registration date beyond 31 October 2020 to cover those workers taken on as covid-19 tier restrictions were relaxed but were subsequently let go without furlough payments from 30 December 2020.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Throughout the pandemic, the Government has moved the cut-off date for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme when possible, bringing millions of people into the scope of the scheme who were previously ineligible. For claim periods under the extension from 1 May 2021, as announced at Budget, the Government has extended the eligibility window so that it will run from 20 March 2020 until 2 March 2021. Based on early estimates, this means that about 2.4 million more jobs are eligible for the scheme.
However, for all eligibility decisions under the CJRS, the Government balances the need to support as many people as possible with the need to protect the scheme from fraud. The 30 October 2020 cut-off date is necessary for claims relating to the period from 1 November 2020 to 30 April 2021, because having a cut-off date on the day before an announcement of an extension to the CJRS allows as many people as possible to be included, while balancing the risk of fraud that exists as soon as the forward plan becomes public.
The CJRS is only one part of the substantial package of support that the Government has introduced for businesses and individuals.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect on women of not including reusable menstrual underwear in the new zero rate of VAT for sanitary protection products.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
A zero rate of VAT has applied to women’s sanitary products since 1 January 2021. This applies to those products which were previously subject to the reduced rate of 5 per cent, for example, tampons and pads, and to reusable menstrual products, such as keepers.
The relief specifically excludes articles of clothing, such as “period pants”. Such exclusions are designed to ensure that the relief is properly targeted, since difficulties in policing the scope of the relief create the potential for litigation, erosion of the tax base and a reduction in revenue. Under existing rules “period pants” may already qualify for the zero rate, if they have been specifically designed to be worn by a child, meet the sizing criteria, and are held out for sale specifically for use by girls under the age of 14 years old.
Details are provided in VAT Notice 714: zero-rating young children's clothing and footwear: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vat-notice-714-zero-rating-young-childrens-clothing-and-footwear/vat-notice-714-zero-rating-young-childrens-clothing-and-footwear#items-suitable-only-for-young-children.
The new zero rate will ensure that every woman that needs sanitary protection during their monthly cycle will now, for the first time, have access to a variety of zero rated products on which they had previously paid a 5 per cent rate of VAT.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason the zero-rate of value-added tax for period products is not applied to reusable menstrual underwear that has been specifically designed for period management.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
A zero rate of VAT has applied to women’s sanitary products since 1 January 2021. This applies to those products which were previously subject to the reduced rate of 5 per cent, for example, tampons and pads, and to reusable menstrual products, such as keepers.
The relief specifically excludes articles of clothing, such as “period pants”. Such exclusions are designed to ensure that the relief is properly targeted, since difficulties in policing the scope of the relief create the potential for litigation, erosion of the tax base and a reduction in revenue. Under existing rules “period pants” may already qualify for the zero rate, if they have been specifically designed to be worn by a child, meet the sizing criteria, and are held out for sale specifically for use by girls under the age of 14 years old.
Details are provided in VAT Notice 714: zero-rating young children's clothing and footwear: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vat-notice-714-zero-rating-young-childrens-clothing-and-footwear/vat-notice-714-zero-rating-young-childrens-clothing-and-footwear#items-suitable-only-for-young-children.
The new zero rate will ensure that every woman that needs sanitary protection during their monthly cycle will now, for the first time, have access to a variety of zero rated products on which they had previously paid a 5 per cent rate of VAT.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to provide specific financial support for language schools which have not been included in the list of eligible business for covid-19 support to date.
Answered by Steve Barclay
The Government understands the many areas of difficulty for businesses caused by the COVID-19 disruption and has introduced a number of measures to support businesses through this challenging period.
The Government is making sure that people and businesses have access to the support they need as quickly as possible. The Government has supported businesses through the COVID-19 crisis through an unprecedented support package, including grants for smaller businesses, government-backed loans, and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to protect jobs.
An additional £500 million has been made available via the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG), announced by the Chancellor on 5 January. This builds on the £1.1 billion already allocated following the second lockdown in November 2020.
This further grant funding is designed to support businesses that are severely impacted by the new Covid-19 restrictions. Local authorities have discretion to use this funding to support businesses in the way they see fit, and to determine which businesses are.
I encourage English Language Schools to make full use of the extensive support available.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will include language schools in the eligible retail and leisure categories for business rates relief to allow those schools to access support from future Government grant schemes.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - Leader of HM Official Opposition
The Government has provided enhanced support to the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors through business rates relief given the direct and acute impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on those sectors.
Eligibility for the current business grant schemes is not tied to eligibility for business rates relief provided to the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors. Businesses that are legally required to close due to Covid restrictions are eligible for cash grants from the Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed) of up to £3,000 per month. In addition, these businesses will benefit from one-off grants of up to £9,000 as announced on 5 January.
Businesses which are not eligible for these grants for closed businesses may be able to benefit from the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG). We recently increased the funding available under this scheme to £1.6 billion across England. It is up to each local authority to determine eligibility for this scheme based on their assessment of local economic need; however, we encourage local authorities to support businesses which have been impacted by COVID-19 restrictions, but which are ineligible for the other grant schemes.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the banking sector does not cease to offer business bank accounts to support people who have lost their jobs being able to set up in business or as self-employed.
Answered by John Glen
Decisions about what products are offered to individual businesses remain commercial decisions for banks and building societies. It would be inappropriate for the Government to intervene in these decisions. But the Government has always been clear that lenders should open to new customers where it is operationally possible for them to do so.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been unprecedented demand for banking services, this accompanied with working restrictions due to social distancing has meant banks have faced significant capacity pressures which has limited their ability to meet demand. Banks are doing all they can to meet this demand in these difficult circumstances.
A number of banks remain open to new business customers, and I would encourage businesses struggling to access banking services to explore the full range of alternative finance providers.