Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she will take to increase levels of investment into community finance organisations such as credit unions.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is taking concrete steps to increase investment into community finance organisations. In November 2024, the British Business Bank launched the Community ENABLE Funding (CEF) Programme. This will channel £150 million over the next two years to not-for-profit lenders, including Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs), to widen access to affordable credit for underserved consumers and businesses.
The Government also recognises the important role of credit unions in providing savings and affordable loans to their members and in supporting local communities throughout the country. It is therefore taking action to support credit unions to grow and scale into the future, including a package of growth‑focussed reforms to the credit union common bond.
These reforms were announced in the Financial Inclusion Strategy, published last month, which also outlines a number of measures aimed at improving access to affordable credit — including a Credit Union Transformation Fund to support the sector in England to scale. The Government will work closely with stakeholders to deliver on these interventions.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she will take to measure the impact of the Financial Inclusion Strategy in supporting the credit union sector.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the value that credit unions bring to their members and their key role in supporting financial inclusion, particularly through the provision of savings products and affordable credit.
I published the Government’s Financial Inclusion Strategy last month which sets out a range of ambitious measures to improve financial inclusion and resilience across the UK. This includes interventions to support the credit union sector scale and serve its members more effectively, through the launch of a new £30 million transformation fund for credit unions in England and growth-focused reforms to the common bond to support the growth of credit unions in Great Britain.
We have engaged closely with a range of stakeholders, including credit union sector representatives, to develop the Strategy, and will continue to do so to ensure it has a meaningful impact. The Strategy’s implementation will be reviewed in two years’ time to provide an update on progress and relevant outcomes-based metrics.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of enabling Credit Unions to offer Help to Save accounts.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Help to Save scheme supports financial resilience for working people on low incomes by encouraging consistent, long-term saving and helping them build a financial buffer to plan and prepare for the future. The scheme is currently available to working individuals in receipt of Universal Credit, ensuring it remains targeted at its intended population.
As announced at Autumn Budget 2025, the government will make the Help to Save scheme permanent and, from April 2028, will expand eligibility to include all Universal Credit claimants who receive the child element, the caring element or both.
The government has recently consulted on reforms to the future delivery of Help to Save and has engaged with a range of third-party financial institutions, including credit unions, as part of this process. While a decision on the future delivery model has not yet been made, the government will continue working with credit unions and other interested financial institutions as these proposals are developed further.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Financial Inclusion Strategy will introduce auto-enrolment for savings.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Inclusion Strategy will be published later this year and will seek to tackle a range of barriers which prevent individuals from accessing the financial services and products they need.
The Government has convened a Financial Inclusion Committee to inform the development of the strategy. The Committee has met three times, and a summary of those meetings is available on GOV.UK.
Savings has been one of the areas of focus for the Committee. As part of this work the FCA have recently published a statement on payroll savings, which gives employers and savings providers the clarity and reassurance that workplace savings schemes can be successfully set up and implemented to comply with current rules and legislation.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she plans to take to increase growth spending on (a) transport and (b) research and development outside of the South East of England.
Answered by Darren Jones - Minister for Intergovernmental Relations
Investment in our transport infrastructure is key to delivering the growth mission – with this government committing to a real terms increase in transport investment in 2025-26.
We have committed over £1 billion for the North and over £500m for the Midlands in 25/26 to improve local transport services people use every day.
The Government is protecting record levels of R&D investment, with £20.4 billion allocated in 2025/2026; ensuring the benefits of R&D are felt across the country, including through Innovation Accelerators, which the government will extend into 2025-26 to continue to bolster high-potential innovation clusters in the Glasgow City Region, Greater Manchester, and the West Midlands.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she plans to take to support cities outside London.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Spreading prosperity across the United Kingdom is a key pillar of the Growth Mission. The Government’s regional growth strategy will drive growth in city regions and make the most of the opportunities in each part of the country.
We are supporting the potential of city regions through the publication of the English Devolution Bill and the launch of integrated funding settlements, which will give local leaders a single, flexible funding pot to spend where their area needs. We will work side by side with our mayors, local leaders and the devolved governments to support regions to achieve their potential.
The government is supporting regional growth, with a total package worth over £3 billion in 2025-26 alone. We have unlocked private investment including setting a new strategic steer for the National Wealth Fund to deliver our ambition for growth across the country. We are supporting growth in the the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, including though delivering East-West Rail. We are also investing in economic infrastructure across the country, including via West Yorkshire Mass Transit which will transform connectivity in the region.
The Industrial Strategy will be published in spring 2025, alongside with the Spending Review, which will focus on eight growth-driving sectors, create a pro-business environment and support city-regions across the country.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she plans to take to (a) develop and (b) implement growth corridor plans like the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor in other regions.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Chancellor has recently announced the Government’s commitment to unlock growth in the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, and the high potential sectors within it, as part of the Government’s Plan for Change.
The Government believes that strengthening east to west connections is essential to allow our whole economy, including outside the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, to meet its potential.
The Government’s regional growth strategy will drive growth in city regions and make the most of the opportunities in each part of the country. Spreading prosperity across the United Kingdom is a key pillar of the Growth Mission.
The Industrial Strategy will also be published in spring 2025, alongside with the Spending Review, which will focus on eight growth-driving sectors, create a pro-business environment and support high-potential clusters, city-regions and industrial sites across the country.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department plans to review the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecasting methodology for revenue from alcohol duty tax receipts.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The OBR regularly reviews its forecasting methodology. Its forecast is informed by economic factors including real household consumption and underlying trends in alcohol consumption.
The OBR published updated price elasticities for alcohol in July 2024.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to help ensure that tobacco duty contributes to the costs of (a) tobacco control and (b) public health initiatives.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The UK has some of the highest tobacco duty rates in the world, payable at £316.70 per thousand cigarettes, plus 16.5% of the retail price and £412.32 per kilogram for hand rolling tobacco. These have helped to support a significant fall in smoking prevalence over the last 10 years to 11.9%. The Chief Medical Officer considers them a key part of the wider anti-smoking strategy.
The government is also funding more smoking cessation services. This includes providing an additional £70 million per annum for local Stop Smoking Services, working to ensure all NHS hospitals offer 'opt-out' smoking cessation services and delivering the national Smoke-free Pregnancy Financial Incentives scheme and the Swap to Stop scheme.
As with all taxes, the Government keeps tobacco duty rates under review during its Budget process.
Asked by: Paul Davies (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the importance of banking hubs in rural areas.
Answered by Tulip Siddiq
The Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities and is committed to championing sufficient access for all as a priority. This is why the Government is working closely with industry to ensure that 350 banking hubs are delivered across the UK. The UK banking sector has committed to deliver these hubs by the end of this parliament. Over 80 banking hubs are already open and Cash Access UK, who oversee banking hub rollout, expect 100 hubs to be open by Christmas.
The specific location of these hubs is determined independently by LINK, the operator of the UK’s largest ATM network. Criteria that LINK considers includes whether another bank branch remains nearby, local population, number of cash-accepting businesses and the financial vulnerability of the community.
An alternative option for accessing face-to-face banking services in rural areas is via the Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows personal and business customers to withdraw and deposit cash, cash cheques, and check their balance at 11,500 Post Office branches across the UK.