Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Prime Minister's oral contribution of 23 October 2017, on funding for contingency plans in preparation for the UK leaving the EU, Official Report, columns 23 to 25, if he will publish the level of funding allocated to each Department and the reasons for that allocation.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
As stated in my written Ministerial Statement on the 12th October, the Treasury has committed over £250 million of additional spending in 2017-18 to prepare for Brexit from the Reserve. Departmental allocations will be set out at Supplementary Estimates in the usual way.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received from organisations representing sign-language interpreters for the deaf on the IR35 tax system.
Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Chancellor receives representations from a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether funding for Wales currently provided through all EU programmes will be matched by the Government after 2020.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The government has announced a number of guarantees for EU funding. These include: structural and investment fund projects signed before the UK leaves the EU, awards made by the European Commission following competitive bid processes, and maintaining the current level of agricultural funding under CAP pillar 1 until 2020.
Beyond these priorities, decisions on the replacement of EU funding will be taken in light of wider UK strategic priorities and other domestic spending decisions.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many fines were issued for late payment of VAT bills in each local authority area in England and Wales in each of the last three years.
Answered by Jane Ellison
HM Revenue and Customs does not hold data on fines for late payment of VAT bills split by local authority area.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many firms were investigated for alleged (a) non-payment of and (b) other breaches of national minimum or living wage legislation in each local authority in Wales in the last 12 months.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) receives it. Anyone who feels they have been underpaid NMW or NLW should contact the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reviews all complaints referred to the department.
HMRC does not record statistics on complaints or the outcomes of its investigations by reference to Government regions, constituencies or counties. In 2015/16, HMRC investigated 2,667 businesses, identifying £10.3m of underpaid wages for 58,080 workers.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will list the value of tax reliefs on tonnage tax granted to merchant shipping companies who are members of the SMarT Funding scheme in each of the last five years.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The purpose of the Tonnage Tax relief is to promote the success and effectiveness of UK strategically and commercially managed shipping fleets in a market highly exposed to international competition and whose management is highly mobile. The table below shows the estimated tax liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for each year from 2010 to 2014 (the latest year for which full data is currently available) and the estimated tax liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for companies registered in the SMarT Funding scheme. This relates to companies who reported a Tonnage Tax Profit in the relevant year:
Calendar Year | Number of Companies | Total Tax Liabilities due to Tonnage Tax (£m Rounded) | Tax Liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for companies registered in the SMarT Funding Scheme (£m Rounded) |
2010 | 450 | 16 | 2.5 |
2011 | 460 | 17 | 5.1 |
2012 | 450 | 17 | 3.5 |
2013 | 420 | 17 | 3.3 |
2014 | 340 | 15 | 3.3 |
Data cannot be broken down to reflect relief given to individual companies for reasons of confidentiality. Tax liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for individual companies ranged from £0 to £1.4 million for each year in the five year period.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will list the value of tax reliefs granted to each merchant shipping company in each of the last five years; and for what purposes those tax reliefs were granted.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The purpose of the Tonnage Tax relief is to promote the success and effectiveness of UK strategically and commercially managed shipping fleets in a market highly exposed to international competition and whose management is highly mobile. The table below shows the estimated tax liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for each year from 2010 to 2014 (the latest year for which full data is currently available) and the estimated tax liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for companies registered in the SMarT Funding scheme. This relates to companies who reported a Tonnage Tax Profit in the relevant year:
Calendar Year | Number of Companies | Total Tax Liabilities due to Tonnage Tax (£m Rounded) | Tax Liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for companies registered in the SMarT Funding Scheme (£m Rounded) |
2010 | 450 | 16 | 2.5 |
2011 | 460 | 17 | 5.1 |
2012 | 450 | 17 | 3.5 |
2013 | 420 | 17 | 3.3 |
2014 | 340 | 15 | 3.3 |
Data cannot be broken down to reflect relief given to individual companies for reasons of confidentiality. Tax liabilities due to Tonnage Tax for individual companies ranged from £0 to £1.4 million for each year in the five year period.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many outstanding appeals against decisions made by Concentrix on tax credits there were up to 16 January 2017.
Answered by Jane Ellison
HM Revenue and Customs has 237 outstanding appeals against decisions made by Concentrix up to 16 January 2017.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what investigations (a) have been concluded and (b) remain ongoing for alleged non-payment of the minimum wage by Mitie Group companies in the last two years.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) receives it. Anyone who feels they have been underpaid NMW or NLW should contact the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reviews all complaints that are referred to them. Additionally, HMRC collates and analyses data from various sources in order to identify those employers who are potentially more likely to be underpaying NMW or NLW so that they can undertake targeted enforcement against those employers.
For reasons of confidentiality, HMRC does not divulge information relating to the affairs of an individual or company or confirm whether or not there is an ongoing enquiry. HMRC investigates all cases where it is believed an employer is not paying its workers the minimum wage to ensure those workers receive what they are owed under the law.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential economic effect of the withdrawal of EU funding on the South Wales metro project.
Answered by David Gauke
The UK Government will guarantee funding otherwise expected from the EU for structural and investment projects in Wales, including European Regional Development projects, signed before we leave the EU. It will be for the Welsh Government to make an assessment of which projects should be pursued in areas of its competence within its MFF allocations in this period, and this guarantee will apply to any such projects.