Asked by: Mike Reader (Labour - Northampton South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with the CMA9 banks on the potential impact of reported employment practices at Open Banking Limited on public and industry confidence in the Open Banking and Open Finance framework.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is responsible for ensuring that the obligations under Part 2 of the Retail Banking Market Investigation Order (the Order), and the accompanying Agreed Arrangements, are satisfied. The Government is aware that Open Banking Limited (OBL) has recently conducted a review of its settlement agreements and sought external legal advice to ensure that these are legally compliant.
For the future, the Government has committed to establish a long-term regulatory framework to support the growth of UK Open Banking. This will provide the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) with powers to regulate Open Banking – including FCA oversight of a so-called ‘Future Entity’ which will take on the functions currently carried out by OBL under the Order.
Treasury officials are engaging with the CMA to inform the design of this future framework.
In due course, the Government will consult on its legislative approach, including the powers it intends to provide the FCA to ensure it can effectively oversee the Open Banking ecosystem and its participants.
Asked by: Mike Reader (Labour - Northampton South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has held discussions with the Competition and Markets Authority on the adequacy of Open Banking Limited's governance and accountability arrangements in the context of its role in open banking or the open finance framework.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is responsible for ensuring that the obligations under Part 2 of the Retail Banking Market Investigation Order (the Order), and the accompanying Agreed Arrangements, are satisfied. The Government is aware that Open Banking Limited (OBL) has recently conducted a review of its settlement agreements and sought external legal advice to ensure that these are legally compliant.
For the future, the Government has committed to establish a long-term regulatory framework to support the growth of UK Open Banking. This will provide the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) with powers to regulate Open Banking – including FCA oversight of a so-called ‘Future Entity’ which will take on the functions currently carried out by OBL under the Order.
Treasury officials are engaging with the CMA to inform the design of this future framework.
In due course, the Government will consult on its legislative approach, including the powers it intends to provide the FCA to ensure it can effectively oversee the Open Banking ecosystem and its participants.
Asked by: Mike Reader (Labour - Northampton South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what role her Department has in (a) monitoring and (b) supporting the governance and accountability of bodies established following Competition and Markets Authority remedies, where those bodies are funded by regulated firms including the CMA9 banks.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is responsible for ensuring that the obligations under Part 2 of the Retail Banking Market Investigation Order (the Order), and the accompanying Agreed Arrangements, are satisfied. The Government is aware that Open Banking Limited (OBL) has recently conducted a review of its settlement agreements and sought external legal advice to ensure that these are legally compliant.
For the future, the Government has committed to establish a long-term regulatory framework to support the growth of UK Open Banking. This will provide the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) with powers to regulate Open Banking – including FCA oversight of a so-called ‘Future Entity’ which will take on the functions currently carried out by OBL under the Order.
Treasury officials are engaging with the CMA to inform the design of this future framework.
In due course, the Government will consult on its legislative approach, including the powers it intends to provide the FCA to ensure it can effectively oversee the Open Banking ecosystem and its participants.
Asked by: Mike Reader (Labour - Northampton South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that decisions relating to the future regulatory framework for Open Banking and Open Finance reflect high standards of governance, transparency, and employment protections.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is responsible for ensuring that the obligations under Part 2 of the Retail Banking Market Investigation Order (the Order), and the accompanying Agreed Arrangements, are satisfied. The Government is aware that Open Banking Limited (OBL) has recently conducted a review of its settlement agreements and sought external legal advice to ensure that these are legally compliant.
For the future, the Government has committed to establish a long-term regulatory framework to support the growth of UK Open Banking. This will provide the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) with powers to regulate Open Banking – including FCA oversight of a so-called ‘Future Entity’ which will take on the functions currently carried out by OBL under the Order.
Treasury officials are engaging with the CMA to inform the design of this future framework.
In due course, the Government will consult on its legislative approach, including the powers it intends to provide the FCA to ensure it can effectively oversee the Open Banking ecosystem and its participants.
Asked by: Mike Reader (Labour - Northampton South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor for the Exchequer, whether the Office for Investment is taking to update its infrastructure pipeline portal; and whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential lessons learned from the (a) Australian, (b) New Zealand and (c) other international models of infrastructure pipeline portals.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The NISTA Infrastructure Pipeline was launched in July and plans to update the pipeline are outlined here: https://pipeline.nista.grid.civilservice.gov.uk/future. In developing the design of the Pipeline, NISTA drew on a broad range of industry feedback and examples, including from those outside the UK such as Australia and New Zealand. The Pipeline team will continue its active engagement of users to steer its design and ensure it improves through forthcoming iterations.
Asked by: Mike Reader (Labour - Northampton South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of increasing pension fund investment in private markets and infrastructure on the economy.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
In May, 17 of the largest workplace pension providers signed the Mansion House Accord and voluntarily committed to invest at least 10 per cent of their defined contribution main default funds in private markets by 2030, with at least half of that invested in the UK.
This is expected to unlock £50 billion of additional private market investment by 2030, including £25 billion in the UK. As providers work towards meeting these commitments, they will be investing more in private assets such as infrastructure projects.
Additionally, the measures in the Pension Schemes Bill, introduced in July, will ensure pension schemes have the scale and expertise to access these types of investment.
Asked by: Mike Reader (Labour - Northampton South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending VAT relief to (a) heat batteries and (b) other new energy saving technologies that can help decarbonise homes when a heat pump cannot be installed.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The installation of qualifying energy-saving materials in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a relevant charitable purpose benefits from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027.
Last year, a Call for Evidence (CfE) seeking views on additional technologies to potentially include within this relief was run. Heat batteries were one of the technologies put forwards by respondents. As set out in the Government response to the CfE, at that time, the Government was unable to identify sufficient independent data regarding the efficiency of heat batteries, making it difficult to assess the technology’s energy-saving properties objectively.
The Government currently has no plans to add further technologies to this VAT relief. Nevertheless, the Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process. Changes to the tax system are announced at fiscal events in the usual way.