Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Autumn Budget 2025, published on 26 November, HC 1492, on what evidential basis she estimated the saving arising from the abolition of Police and Crime Commissioners and re-organising local government structures.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government is committed to cutting the cost of politics.
The figures were calculated based on estimated savings from the potential reduction in local councillors through local government reorganisation and from the abolition of Police and Crime Commissioners.
These estimates are built from a range of sources including Local Government Boundary Commission data; salaries; office costs; election costs; sampling of councillor expenditure data from current authorities.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department holds data on (a) taxes paid and (b) the cost of public services used by migrants who have arrived in the UK within the last 10 years.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
HMRC does not hold aggregate data on the taxes paid by migrants who have arrived in the UK within the last 10 years.
HMRC does hold data on the nationality reported by individuals at the point of National Insurance number registration, for adult National Insurance number registrations. This data is used to produce statistics on UK payrolled employments by nationality, region, industry, age and sex.
UK public spending covers a wide range of areas, including public services and infrastructure that are public goods. All groups in society benefit from these areas of public spending. In addition, some public provision is at a family or household level. It is therefore not possible to distinguish spending per person between migrant and non-migrants
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the projected fiscal impact of net migration on public spending over the next five years.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The OBR is the government’s official economic and fiscal forecaster. Box 4.5 of the OBR’s published Economic and Fiscal Outlook in March 2024 sets out estimated impacts of migration on the fiscal forecast.
The OBR will produce updated economic and fiscal forecasts in its Economic and Fiscal Outlook, which will be published alongside the Budget on 26 November.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 20 of the Valuation Office Agency's document entitled Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25, published on 17 July 2025, if she will set out the changes to the methodology for valuing (a) petrol filling stations and (b) public houses in the 2026 business rates revaluation.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
There has been no change to the valuation methodology for pubs or petrol filling stations for the 2026 business rates revaluation.
Our approach to valuing pubs has been established in collaboration with industry experts from the British Beer & Pub Association, UK Hospitality, British Institute of Innkeeping and the Federation of Licensed Victuallers Associations. Our approach to valuing petrol stations has been established in collaboration with industry experts, including the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) and Fuels Industry UK.
The Rating Manual guidance will be updated on 1st April 2026 when the 2026 list takes effect.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what her policy is on reforming stamp duty; and what representations she has received on introducing an annual tax on the capital value of primary residences.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
SDLT continues to be an important source of government revenue, raising around £12 billion each year to help pay for the essential services the government provides. Any changes to taxes such as SDLT would therefore have to be carefully considered given the potential effect on public finances.
The government keeps all taxes under review as part of the usual tax policy making process.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor for the Exchequer, whether she plans to increase (a) regulation or (b) taxation on second homes.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government keeps all taxes under review as part of the usual tax policy making process.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 18 February 2025 to Question 30146 on Business Rates, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of reducing relative to the 2024-25 scheme the value of the retail, hospitality and leisure relief per hereditament in 2025-26 to offset increased costs arising from the removal of the £110,000 per business cap.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The existing retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) relief has been repeatedly extended year-by-year as a temporary stopgap measure. We recognise that this creates cliff-edges and uncertainty for businesses, as well as significant fiscal pressure.
That is why, from 2026/27 we will introduce permanently lower tax rates for RHL properties with rateable values (RVs) under £500,000. Like all business rates multipliers, these lower RHL multipliers will not be subject to a cash cap. This permanent tax cut will ensure that RHL businesses benefit from much-needed certainty and support.
We also recognise that RHL businesses will need support during the interim period for 2025/26, and so we are providing 40 per cent relief to RHL properties up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business.
The rates for the new business rate multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that the Government can take into account the upcoming revaluation outcomes as well as the economic and fiscal context. When the new multipliers are set, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis of the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2025 to Question 44492 on Business Rates: Tax Allowances, if she will list the special category codes for the types of hereditaments whose valuation is assessed (a) in whole and (b) in part on a consideration of the receipts and expenditure of the property.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Special category codes (SCAT) identify the type of property, not the valuation methodology adopted. They cannot be used to identify the valuation method because for some property types a receipts and expenditure, contractor’s or rental comparison methods may all have been used.
The valuation methods used for different property types are set out on gov.uk here: Business Rates – Valuation Office Agency
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will set out the the policy of the Valuation Office Agency on amending the valuation of (a) schools and (b) hospitals following the installation of rooftop solar panels.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) applies the law as it stands when valuing domestic and non-domestic properties.
In relation to solar panels, the legal position is set out in the Rating Manual, which is published on gov.uk: Section 5a: valuation of all property classes - Power generators - Guidance - GOV.UK, in particular Appendix 1: rateability of microgeneration schemes refers.
Asked by: Lewis Cocking (Conservative - Broxbourne)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 25 of the Valuation Office Agency's document entitled Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25, published on 17 July 2025, if she will publish the training manual for the Valuation Operating System for council tax.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The training material the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has produced on the Valuation Operating System is for internal staff use only.