Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether businesses that operate from a business unit with a rateable value of up to £51,000 are eligible for the (a) Retail, Hospitality & Leisure Grant and (b) discretionary fund.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
Under the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund, businesses can receive:
· A £10,000 cash grant per property, for each property used for retail, hospitality or leisure purposes with a rateable value of £15,000 or below which is not in receipt of Small Business Rates Relief or Rural Rates Relief;
· A £25,000 cash grant per property, for each property used for retail, hospitality or leisure purposes with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000.
The Government is aware that some small businesses have found themselves excluded from the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund and the Small Business Grant Fund because of the way they interact with the business rates system. That is why the Government has allocated up to an additional £617 million to Local Authorities to enable them to give discretionary grants to businesses in this situation. The Government’s intention is for Local Authorities to prioritise the following types of business when making discretionary grants:
Local Authorities may choose to focus payments on those priority groups which are most relevant to their local areas. Local Authorities may also choose to pay grants to businesses outside of these priority groups, according to local economic need, so long as the business was trading on 11th March, and has not received any other cash grant funded by central Government. Grants should also primarily and predominantly be aimed at businesses which occupy property with a rateable value below £51,000.
Small businesses which are not eligible for business grants should still be able to benefit from other elements of the Government’s unprecedented package of support for business, including:
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal support is available for owner-operated or small limited companies run from home in the event that directors of those companies do not wish to furlough themselves as they want to continue to work to sustain their businesses.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The current grants schemes administered by local authorities have been designed to ensure that payments are made quickly and efficiently to small businesses facing particularly high fixed-property costs. Businesses which are not eligible for these grants – such as those run from home offices – may benefit from other measures in the Government’s unprecedented package of support for business, including:
The Business Support website provides further information about how businesses can access the support that has been made available, who is eligible, when the schemes open and how to apply - https://www.businesssupport.gov.uk/coronavirus-business-support. And details of the range of support for individuals affected by COVID-19 is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/support-for-those-affected-by-covid-19/support-for-those-affected-by-covid-19.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many individual pieces of correspondence he has (a) received from MPs on behalf of constituents on matters relating to covid-19 on each date since the outbreak began and (b) provided in response to that correspondence in each category of response.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The information is not routinely collected by HM Treasury.
The Treasury has received unprecedented amounts of correspondence since the start of the coronavirus outbreak in the UK.
All Member’s correspondence is currently receiving attention and will be responded to as soon as possible.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal support the Government has made available for those newly self-employed in the financial year 2019-20 who are not eligible for the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has designed measures that can be implemented quickly and effectively, and it continues to work with stakeholders to make sure funding reaches those who need it most. Anyone ineligible for the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme who requires support should have access to other measures appropriate to their individual circumstances. These include the relaxation of the earnings rules in Universal Credit and the raising of the Local Housing Allowance rate.Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many claims have been made to the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme in Walthamstow constituency.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme went live on 13 May 2020.
By midnight on 14 May, about 1.1 million claims representing £3.1 billion had been made in total
This is a new scheme and HMRC are currently working through the analysis they will be able to provide based on the data available. HMRC will make the timescales for publication and the types of data available in due course.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the end of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme on (a) the gender pay gap and (b) indirect discrimination.
Answered by Jesse Norman
HM Treasury pays due regard to the equality impacts of policy decisions relating to the COVID-19 outbreak, in line with legal requirements and the Government’s commitment to promoting equality. There are internal procedural requirements and support in place to ensure that such considerations inform decisions taken by ministers.
The Treasury’s decision on when and how to close down the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will be based on all available evidence, including any equalities impacts.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) removing the £51,000 limit on retail, hospitality and leisure grants and (b) directing local authorities that supply chain businesses are eligible for rate relief and business support.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund has been designed to support small businesses in some of the sectors hit hardest by the measures taken to prevent the spread of Covid-19. In order to ensure that payments can be made quickly and efficiently to businesses which are facing particularly high fixed costs, the scheme is tied to the business rates system. Under the business rates system, small businesses are defined as those with a rateable value below £51,000. The Government continues to review the economic situation and consider what support businesses need. However, there are currently no plans to extend the grants scheme above the £51,000 limit.
The Government recognises that this is a very challenging time for businesses in a wide variety of sectors. Small businesses occupying properties for retail, hospitality or leisure purposes are likely to be particularly affected by Covid-19 due to their reliance on customer footfall, and the fact that they are less likely than larger businesses to have sufficient cash reserves to meet their high fixed property-related costs. The Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund is intended to help small businesses in this situation.
On Friday 1 May, the Government announced that it would be making up to £617m of additional funding available to Local Authorities to enable them to make payments of up to £25,000 to businesses which have been excluded from the existing grants schemes because of the way they interact with the business rates system. Local Authorities can choose to make discretionary grants to businesses in the supply chains of these sectors if they feel there is a particular local economic need. However, the priority of all the grants schemes continues to be to help the smallest businesses, and small businesses which are facing significant property-related costs and operate in sectors which have been particularly hard hit by the steep decline in customer footfall.
Businesses which are not eligible for the grants schemes should still be able to benefit from other measures in the Government’s unprecedented package of support for business, including:
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether nannies are eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.
Answered by Jesse Norman
In March, the Government announced the unprecedented Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to help firms keep millions of people in employment. The scheme is open to any individual who was on an employer’s PAYE payroll on or before 19 March 2020 and for whom HMRC received an RTI submission notifying payment in respect of that employee on or before the 19 March 2020. Full guidance for employers and employees can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme and www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-you-could-be-covered-by-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Financial Conduct Authority to determine the effect of the persistent credit card debt remedies introduced in February 2018, and what steps his Department is taking to ensure that credit card holders do not pay more than the amount borrowed in interest, fees and other charges.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), as the regulator responsible for the consumer credit market, has taken a range of steps to protect consumers in this market. These include the introduction of new rules in February 2018 to help customers in persistent credit card debt. The rules require firms to better identify struggling customers, carry out greater interventions, and exercise forbearance for those struggling most. In its Policy Statement PS18/4, the FCA commits to reviewing the new rules in 2022 or 2023, once they have been fully implemented by firms and in operation long enough to assess consumer outcomes.
On 3 February 2020, the FCA wrote to credit card firms to reiterate their expectations for handling customers in persistent debt. This letter outlined that firms should encourage customers to open a dialogue about potential repayment arrangements, and, where customers cannot afford the options proposed, firms should consider reducing, waiving, or cancelling any interest or charges.
Treasury ministers and officials meet regularly with the FCA, and the Government will continue to work closely with the FCA to ensure consumers of financial services are treated fairly.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations his Department has received from consumer groups on unintended consequences of the Financial Conduct Authority’s persistent credit card debt remedies; and if he will ask the FCA to (i) bring forward its review of those remedies and (ii) include in that review consideration of a cap on charges.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Treasury ministers and officials meet regularly with a range of interest groups to discuss consumer issues in financial services, including persistent debt.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is responsible for regulating and supervising the financial services industry and has strong powers to protect consumers. Although the Treasury sets the legal framework, the FCA is an independent regulator and Treasury ministers have no general power of direction over the FCA.
The FCA has committed in its Policy Statement PS18/4 to review the persistent credit card debt rules once they have been fully implemented by firms and in operation long enough to assess consumer outcomes. The FCA expect this to be in 2022 or 2023. The Government will continue to work closely with the FCA to ensure consumers of financial services are treated fairly.