Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many families in Wakefield constituency have been written to in order to inform them that the Childcare Vouchers scheme is closing to new entrants on 5 April 2018.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
Information on the number of parents eligible for Tax-Free Childcare by constituency is not available at the current time.
Regarding the number of parents who have used childcare vouchers in the Wakefield constituency, I refer the Honourable Member to the answer I gave on 25 January 2017 to the Honourable Member for Hull North (123405).
Parents currently receiving vouchers can continue to do so while they work for the same employer and that employer continues to offer them. HM Revenue & Customs have published guidance and written to employers, who operate the schemes, to make sure that they are aware of the changes.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2018 to Question 122491, what assessment his Department has made of the contribution of European Investment Bank funding to the UK's green industry.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
As the Chancellor set out in his 2017 Mansion House speech, the EIB has been an important source of finance for infrastructure investment in the UK. The EIB invests across a range of sectors including energy, transport, housing, education, water and sewerage.
For the green industry, the EIBs largest and most frequent loans over the last decade have been in the field of renewable energy generation, more specifically; offshore wind farms and offshore transmission networks (through OFGEMs offshore transmission network tendering process).
From 2006-2016 the EIB lent €15.69bn to the UK energy sector. Of this, roughly a quarter was to projects related to offshore wind generation.
The EIB has also lent to other types of environmentally focussed projects such as the rollout of Smart Meters and the Thames Tideway Tunnel.
A complete database of all EIB projects and loan amounts can be found at the link below;
http://www.eib.org/projects/loan/list/?region=1&country=GB
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many disposable coffee cups were purchased by his Department in each of the last five years.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
HM Treasury does not have information about the use and recycling of disposable coffee cups within the department. Facilities management services in 1 Horse Guards Road are provided to HM Treasury under a 35 year PFI agreement with Exchequer Partnerships Plc. Cups are provided by Exchequer Partnership’s subcontractor.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of European Investment Bank funding on the UK's green industry.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The European Investment Bank, and its offshoot, the European Investment Fund, provide financing for infrastructure investment and growth businesses in a range of sectors including in the UK’s green industry, particularly renewable energy.
As set out in the joint report on progress during phase 1 of the negotiations, the government considers that there could be mutual benefit from a continuing arrangement between the UK and the EIB, and wishes to explore these possible arrangements in the second phase of negotiations.
The government is also continuing to take steps to ensure that finance continues to be available for good infrastructure projects and growth businesses: the UK Guarantees Scheme, which gives government support for private infrastructure finance, has been broadened to offer construction guarantees, and at Budget the Chancellor launched the Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund to support the transition to zero emission vehicles.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many vehicles in his Department's fleet are (a) electric vehicles and (b) ultra-low emission vehicles.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Chancellor’s Department does not operate a fleet of cars.
The Treasury uses two cars provided by the Government Car Service, which will be included in the return from the Department for Transport.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how does his Department plan to replace European Investment Bank (EIB) investment in the UK after the UK has left the EU; and what assessment his Department has made of the effect of EIB funding on the UK's green industry.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The European Investment Bank, and its offshoot, the European Investment Fund, provide financing for infrastructure investment and growth businesses in a range of sectors including renewable energy.
As set out in the joint report on progress during phase 1 of the negotiations, the government considers that there could be mutual benefit from a continuing arrangement between the UK and the EIB, and wishes to explore these possible arrangements in the second phase of negotiations.
The government is also continuing to take steps to ensure that finance continues to be available for good infrastructure projects and growth businesses: the UK Guarantees Scheme, which gives government support for private infrastructure finance, has been broadened to offer construction guarantees, and at Budget the Chancellor launched the Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund to support the transition to zero emission vehicles.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress his Department has made on encouraging companies to take up the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
HM Treasury recognises the important role data and transparency play in ensuring the accurate pricing of climate-related financial risk. That is why the government has officially endorsed the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and encouraged publicly listed firms to implement them, in line with the TCFD’s voluntary approach.
To support this, the private sector Green Finance Taskforce, which was launched by HM Treasury and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, has also been asked to consider if government should and could play a role in enabling and facilitating the implementation of the TCFD recommendations. The implementation of the TCFD recommendations is a cross-cutting workstream of the Green Finance Taskforce, the Terms of Reference of which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/green-finance
Participants from across the financial services industry have given feedback on implementing the recommendations, including potential government action to encourage uptake. The Taskforce’s report is due to be published in spring 2018 and will include TCFD-related considerations.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the amount accrued to the public purse from VAT on phone-call donations to charity in each of the last five financial years.
Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
This level of detail is not requested on VAT returns and therefore we do not have data available on how much revenue is raised from VAT on phone charges for making donations to charities. There is no VAT on the donations.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has estimated the level of financial support that will be available to agriculture after 2022.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
Leaving the EU means, in future, we can take our own decisions about how to support an economy that works for everyone.
The government has promised to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of the parliament. It will work with stakeholders to understand the value of EU funded programmes, including agriculture and to ensure that any ongoing funding commitments best serve the UK‘s national interest.
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has estimated the level of financial support that will be available to agriculture after 2022.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
Leaving the EU means, in future, we can take our own decisions about how to support an economy that works for everyone.
The government has promised to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of the parliament. It will work with stakeholders to understand the value of EU funded programmes, including agriculture and to ensure that any ongoing funding commitments best serve the UK‘s national interest.