Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal support he has made available to help small businesses in Harlow in response to the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
Throughout this crisis, the Government has sought to support businesses, jobs and public services up and down the UK. That is why it has spent over £280 billion to make a package of support available for businesses which has included billions in wage support, loans, tax deferrals, Business Rate reliefs and sector-specific grants.
Following the implementation of the latest national lockdown in January, the Government announced additional funding for businesses worth £4.6 billion across the UK. This includes a £500m payment to local authorities, to top up their allocation from the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG), which has already provided local authorities with £1.1 billion.
This funding will ensure that local authorities can provide discretionary grants to businesses which are not eligible for the Local Restrictions Support Grants, but which are nonetheless experiencing a severe impact on their business due to the national lockdown. These businesses may also be eligible for further aspects of our generous support package outlined above.
We remain committed to ensuring we take the right action at the right time to support individuals and businesses in every region and nation of the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to extend the mortgage holiday.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
We have extended the period that borrowers can apply for a mortgage holiday to support all homeowners in financial distress. Mortgage borrowers who have not yet taken a payment holiday are able to take a payment holiday for up to six months. Borrowers who have taken an initial payment holiday can top this up to six months. The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) guidance released on 17 November sets out that mortgage holidays (up to a maximum of 6 months) will remain an option for borrowers until 31 March 2021. However, the FCA guidance also notes that all payment holidays will need to end by 31 July 2021.
For borrowers that have already taken a full six months payment holiday, the FCA’s guidance sets out that firms should continue to provide support through tailored forbearance options for those borrowers that are facing ongoing financial difficulties. This could include granting new mortgage payment holidays.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to cut VAT on energy bills for families across the UK.
Answered by Jesse Norman
In recognition of the fact that families should not have to bear all of the VAT costs they incur to meet their needs, households already benefit from a reduced VAT rate of 5 per cent on domestic supplies of gas and electricity.
Decisions on tax policy are made at fiscal events and the Government keeps all taxes under review.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to support self-employed individuals who have not previously earned enough money to be eligible for support during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Throughout the crisis, the Government’s priority has been to protect lives and livelihoods. This is why it has introduced a comprehensive package of support that self-employed individuals can benefit from.
Applications are open for eligible individuals to claim the third grant under the Self Employment Income Support Scheme. The third taxable grant is worth 80% of average monthly trading profits, paid out in a single instalment covering 3 months’ worth of profits, and capped at £7,500 in total. There will also be a fourth grant covering February 2021 to April 2021. The Government will set out further details, including the level of the fourth grant, in due course.
Those ineligible for the SEISS may still be eligible for other elements of the support available. The Universal Credit standard allowance has been temporarily increased for 2020-21 and the Minimum Income Floor relaxed for the duration of the crisis, so that where self-employed claimants' earnings have fallen significantly, their Universal Credit award will have increased to reflect their lower earnings. In addition to this, they may also have access to other elements of the package, including Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support, mortgage holidays, self-isolation support payments and other business support grants.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on additional financial support in helping to close the disadvantage attainment gap.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
I have regular discussions with the Secretary of State on Education policy. We are committed to ensuring no child, whatever their background, falls behind as a result of this pandemic. Our £1 billion catch-up plan includes £350 million for a National Tutoring Programme targeted at disadvantaged children. We have also provided over £2.4 billion of Pupil Premium funding this year for the most disadvantaged.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to introduce support for people who are ineligible for existing covid-19 support schemes.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has prioritised helping the greatest number of people as quickly as possible, including self-employed individuals, businesses of all sizes and the unemployed. The Government’s package of support to date totals over £190bn, with the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme alone having supported the wages of people in 9.6 million jobs. As the restrictions have changed, support has also evolved. The Government recognises it is not possible to preserve every job or business indefinitely, and will focus on targeting support as effectively as possible. Most recently, the Government announced a package of measures in the Winter Economy Plan, including the Job Support Scheme, that will continue to protect jobs and businesses through the uncertain months ahead.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason his extension of the Self-employed Income Support Scheme is a grant covering 20 per cent on average monthly trading profits.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme Grant Extension has been introduced to help the self-employed who are actively trading but are suffering from reduced demand due to COVID-19, to help them continue to trade through the winter months. The Government has broadly aligned the size of the grant with the Government’s contribution provided for employees through the Job Support Scheme.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress his Department is making on meeting the 2.3 per cent public sector apprenticeship target.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
As of 31 March 2020, the Civil Service has achieved a total of 2.1% of its total workforce as apprentices against the legislative target for the public sector of 2.3% by March 2021. HM Treasury Group has achieved 2.4% of the total staff employed within the department and those of its arms length bodies which are in scope for the target. We are also on track to meet our target in the current year 2020/21. Given this target is a percentage of the total workforce the percentage changes in line with workforce fluctuations over time therefore making it challenging to predict when a department will meet it. The data for 2018/19 can be found here. The data for 2019/20 will be released on gov.uk by the end of September 2020.
Departments are committed to increasing the number of apprentices across the Civil Service and continue to work towards the 2.3% target. The impact of the current pandemic has slowed recruitment due to priority work and logistics. With the current strategy and targets coming to an end in April 2021, the Civil Service is already focusing on how to continue to support the apprenticeship agenda and drive forward apprenticeship recruitment, pulling on the Plan for Jobs initiative and considering the current economic situation.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to publish local data on the cost to the public purse of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has no plans to publish local data on the costs of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. This is because HM Revenue and Customs do not have complete data for the value of claims by area.
Claims are made by employers in respect of their PAYE schemes and the scheme addresses tend to reflect business headquarters and payroll office locations (where these differ) rather than where employees live or work. Using scheme level data would potentially give a misleading picture. In addition, for claims for fewer than 100 employees HMRC do not collect the amount claimed for each employment, so the data at employment level is incomplete.
For these reasons, the cost of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme in Harlow is unavailable.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the cost is of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme in Harlow to date.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has no plans to publish local data on the costs of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. This is because HM Revenue and Customs do not have complete data for the value of claims by area.
Claims are made by employers in respect of their PAYE schemes and the scheme addresses tend to reflect business headquarters and payroll office locations (where these differ) rather than where employees live or work. Using scheme level data would potentially give a misleading picture. In addition, for claims for fewer than 100 employees HMRC do not collect the amount claimed for each employment, so the data at employment level is incomplete.
For these reasons, the cost of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme in Harlow is unavailable.