Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he will publish the Government's response to the Alcohol Duty Review.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The alcohol duty review consultation closed on 30 January 2022 and the Government is currently reviewing the responses. We will publish the consultation response later this year.
This will include further detail on the Small Producer Relief which will be replacing the Small Brewers Relief.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on progress made on reforms to the business rates system.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
With the conclusion of the business rates review, the Government has delivered meaningful reform and cuts worth £7 billion to business over the next five years.
The review has implemented significant new measures to reduce the burden of business rates on firms, including a freeze in the multiplier and further relief for high street businesses during 2022-23, new support for green technology from 2022, and improvement relief from 2023. The Government is committing to more frequent revaluations, which represents significant reform of the system and will ensure that liabilities are more responsive to changing market conditions. This addresses a key ask of stakeholders for more frequent revaluations, reducing the burden of business rates to make the system fairer.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Answer of 26 April 2022 to Question 157540 on Aviation: Taxation, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of tolerating the potential administrative complexity of a frequent flyer levy to facilitate the move towards net zero.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As part of a consultation on aviation tax reform between March and June 2021, the Government sought views on whether a frequent flyer levy could replace APD as the principal tax on the aviation sector.
In the responses received to the consultation, the Government received a wide range of views on a frequent flyer levy. Some stakeholders, including those from the aviation industry, strongly opposed any suggestion that APD should be replaced with a frequent flyer levy, on the grounds that it would be significantly more difficult to administer. Conversely, environmental stakeholders supported the introduction of a frequent flyer levy, considering that the benefits of such a levy outweighed any potential administrative complexity.
Following the consultation, having considered all views received carefully, the Government published a response which outlined that it was minded to retain APD as the principal tax on the aviation sector, noting in particular concerns about the possible administrative complexity and data processing, handling and privacy of a frequent flyer levy.
Full details of the consultation and the Government’s response can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-aviation-tax-reform
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the impact of the rising cost of living on levels of personal debt.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government is committed to monitoring and understanding personal debt levels in the UK, including the impact of cost-of-living pressures, and help individuals access appropriate guidance and support if they need help to get their finances back on track. The Government monitors personal debt levels by working closely with the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and by engaging regularly with many other stakeholders on their research and findings.
The FCA conducts a biennial Financial Lives Survey which provides a comprehensive insight into the finances of the UK population. MaPS monitors financial difficulty through an annual survey of 22,000 people. The results of MaPS’ latest Debt Need Survey were published on 23 February 2022.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he plans to take to avert the International Monetary Fund’s recent projection that the UK will have the slowest growing economy in the G7 in 2023.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The UK was the fastest growing economy in the G7 last year and the IMF forecasts show it will be the second fastest this year, behind Canada. Due to uncertainty partly caused by the war in Ukraine, global growth expectations were downgraded for 2022 and 2023. Overall, between 2019 and 2027, the UK is forecast to see the third highest growth in the G7, behind only Canada and the United States.
The Government has already taken important steps to drive growth through the landmark capital uplift at Spending Review 2021, and plans to invest £20 billion per year in R&D by 2024-25. As set out in the Chancellor’s Mais lecture, and re-iterated at the Spring Statement 2022, to lift growth and productivity, the private sector needs to invest more, train more, and innovate more. The Government recognises it can support this aim by providing clarity and certainty over the long-term development of different aspects of the tax system. Accordingly, the Chancellor set out the Government’s Tax Plan at Spring Statement 2022. This sets out the Government’s commitment to boosting productivity and growth by creating the conditions for the private sector to invest more, train more and innovate more – fostering a new culture of enterprise around capital, people and ideas.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the International Monetary Fund’s recent projection that the UK will have the slowest growing economy in the G7 in 2023.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The UK was the fastest growing economy in the G7 last year and the IMF forecasts show it will be the second fastest this year, behind Canada. Due to uncertainty partly caused by the war in Ukraine, global growth expectations were downgraded for 2022 and 2023. Overall, between 2019 and 2027, the UK is forecast to see the third highest growth in the G7, behind only Canada and the United States.
The Government has already taken important steps to drive growth through the landmark capital uplift at Spending Review 2021, and plans to invest £20 billion per year in R&D by 2024-25. As set out in the Chancellor’s Mais lecture, and re-iterated at the Spring Statement 2022, to lift growth and productivity, the private sector needs to invest more, train more, and innovate more. The Government recognises it can support this aim by providing clarity and certainty over the long-term development of different aspects of the tax system. Accordingly, the Chancellor set out the Government’s Tax Plan at Spring Statement 2022. This sets out the Government’s commitment to boosting productivity and growth by creating the conditions for the private sector to invest more, train more and innovate more – fostering a new culture of enterprise around capital, people and ideas.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to mitigate the effects of the declining number of free-to-use ATMs in Birmingham.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government recognises that cash is an important part of daily life for millions of people across the UK, and remains committed to legislating to protect access to cash.
From 1 July to 23 September last year, the Government held the Access to Cash Consultation on proposals for new laws to make sure people only need to travel a reasonable distance to pay in or take out cash. The Government’s proposals intend to support the continued use of cash in people’s daily lives and help to enable local businesses to continue accepting cash by ensuring they can access deposit facilities.
The Government received responses to the consultation from a broad range of respondents, including individuals, businesses, and charities. The Government has carefully considered responses to the consultation and will set out next steps in due course.
LINK (the scheme that runs the UK's largest ATM network) has commitments to protect the broad geographic spread of free-to-use ATMs and is held to account against these commitments by the Payment Systems Regulator. LINK has committed to protect free-to-use ATMs more than one kilometre away from the next nearest free ATM or Post Office, and free access to cash on high streets (where there is a cluster of five or more retailers) that do not have a free-to-use ATM or a Post Office counter within one kilometre.
More broadly, following the Government’s commitment to legislate, firms are working together through the Cash Action Group to develop new initiatives to provide shared services. The Government welcomes the direction set by industry’s commitments at the end of last year and looks forward to seeing what results they deliver in protecting cash facilities for local communities across the UK.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to mitigate the effects of bank branch closures in Birmingham.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government recognises the importance of appropriate access to banking. However, decisions on opening and closing branches are a commercial issue for banks and building societies.
The largest banks and building societies have been signed up to the Access to Banking Standard since 2017, which commits them to ensure that customers are well informed about branch closures, the bank’s reasons for closure and options for continued access to banking services.
Guidance from the Financial Conduct Authority also sets out its expectation of firms when they are deciding to reduce their physical branches or the number of free-to-use ATMs. Firms are expected to carefully consider the impact of planned branch closures on their customers’ everyday banking and cash access needs and consider possible alternative access arrangements. This ensures that the implementation of closure decisions is undertaken in a way that treats customers fairly.
Alternative options for access can be via telephone banking, through digital means such as mobile or online banking, and the Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows 99% of personal banking and 95% of business banking customers to deposit cheques, check their balance and withdraw and deposit cash at 11,500 Post Office branches in the UK.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of UK banks providing financial support to new oil and gas projects.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Bank’s decisions on commercial lending are matters for them.
The British Energy Security Strategy, published on 7 April 2022, sets out the importance of oil and gas to energy security and the transition to net zero. Nearly all major UK banks are signatories to the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) and are committed to transition their lending to align with Net Zero.