Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will introduce tax reliefs for small businesses undertaking works to improve their properties’ Energy Performance Certificate ratings to a minimum of an EPC rating of C.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government keeps all tax reliefs under review, in order to ensure they strike the right balance between keeping taxes simple to administer, well-targeted and effective. When considering any new tax reliefs, HM Treasury must ensure that a relief is the most effective and fair lever by which to provide that support. Any new tax, or tax relief, would require a comprehensive evaluation of a variety of factors including (but not limited to) fairness and simplicity for the taxpayer, as well as the government’s fiscal position.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of taxing high-polluting corporations to help support net zero initiatives.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government is committed to maintaining an ambitious carbon pricing scheme to ensure that polluters continue to pay for their emissions. The UK’s main carbon pricing scheme is the Emissions Trading Scheme, which covers emissions from power generation, energy intensive industries and aviation (domestic, UK-EEA and UK-Gibraltar flights). The ETS is one of the most cost-effective tools for promoting decarbonisation and plays a key role in helping the UK achieve Net Zero emissions by 2050.
The UK ETS raised approximately £3.5bn in revenue in 2024/25.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to increase funding for emergency services.
Answered by Darren Jones - Minister for Intergovernmental Relations
The Government is committed to supporting our vital emergency services.
That is why in 2025/26 we have increased health spending by £22.6 billion relative to 2023/24, policing funding by £1.1 billion and standalone Fire and Rescue Authorities by £65.5 million compared to 2024/25.
Funding settlements for emergency services over the next three years will be set out in June’s Spending Review.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to review the thresholds for Small Business Rate Relief to reflect changes in rateable values ahead of the 2026 revaluation.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Currently, Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) is available to businesses with a single property below a set rateable value. Eligible properties under £12,000 will receive 100 per cent relief, which means over a third of businesses in England (more than 700,000) pay no business rates at all. There is also tapered support available to properties valued between £12,000 and £15,000, which an additional c.60,000 businesses benefit from.
The Government is committed to retaining SBRR, which is a permanent relief set down in legislation. As highlighted in the Transforming Business Rates Discussion Paper published at Autumn Budget 2024, the Government is interested in hearing stakeholders’ views on the extent to which the current system acts as a barrier to investment and specifically, whether the current eligibility criteria for SBRR impacts businesses' incentives to invest and expand into a second property.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of excluding CCTV systems used for security purposes from business rates valuations.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
At the Autumn Budget, the government published the Transforming Business Rates Discussion Paper, which sets out priority areas for reform. This paper invites industry to help co-design a fairer business rates system that supports investment and is fit for the 21st century.
In summer, the Government will publish an interim report that sets out a clear direction of travel for the business rates system, with further policy detail to follow at Autumn Budget 2025.
Improvement Relief was introduced in April 2024 and provides 12 months of relief for qualifying improvements to a property, including installation of CCTV where this increases a property’s RV.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on investment by businesses.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government has taken a number of difficult but necessary decisions on tax, welfare, and spending to fix the public finances and fund public services.
One of the toughest decisions we took was to raise the rate of employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) from 13.8% to 15%, whilst reducing the per-employee threshold at which employers start to pay National Insurance (the Secondary Threshold) from £9,100 to £5,000.
The Office for Budget Responsibility published the Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO), which sets out a detailed forecast of the economy and public finances.
We acknowledge that, as the OBR set out, employers will pass on some of the costs of this change, as well absorbing some themselves, and employers have a choice about how they respond.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of linking stamp duty thresholds to regional house prices.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is a national tax in England and Northern Ireland charged using the same percentage rates across the country. This ensures stable and predictable revenue for the Exchequer while maintaining fairness for taxpayers. The current structure of SDLT ensures that those buying the most expensive properties contribute the most. Linking SDLT thresholds to regional house prices could increase complexity and create distortive effects around borders, impacting property markets.
More broadly, SDLT continues to be an important source of Government revenue, raising around £12 billion each year to help pay for the essential services the Government provides. Any reforms to SDLT would have to carefully consider impacts on the Exchequer alongside administrative costs and simplicity for the taxpayer. The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the usual tax policy making process.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on recruitment by businesses.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.
The Office for Budget Responsibility also published the Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO), with a detailed forecast of the economy and public finances.
We acknowledge that, as the OBR set out, this measure will have an impact on labour supply. With all policies considered, the OBR expect the employment level to increase from 33.6 million in 2024 to 34.8 million in 2029.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the number of people made bankrupt by the Loan Charge.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
HMRC will only ever consider initiating bankruptcy as a last resort, where they have been unable to work with the customer to agree a manageable payment plan. HMRC will also not force anyone to sell their main home or access their pension funds early to pay their Loan Charge or disguised remuneration debts.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing (a) Pension Credit and (b) the personal allowances of pensioners to mitigate the potential impact of the removal of Winter Fuel Allowance.
Answered by Darren Jones - Minister for Intergovernmental Relations
The standard minimum income guarantee for a single person and couples in Pension Credit rises in line with average earnings to ensure that it maintains its relative value over time to ensure that Pension Credit (Guarantee Credit) will continue to provide a safety net for those who find themselves without an adequate income in retirement.
The government wants to ensure that individuals receive the support that they are eligible for, and we have already seen a greater than 152% increase in Pension Credit claims since the July Statement.
The previous government announced the Personal Allowance (PA) would be maintained at its current level of £12,570 until April 2028. The PA —the amount of income someone can earn before paying income tax—is currently set high enough to ensure that those pensioners whose sole income is the new State Pension or basic State Pension, and who have not deferred and do not receive protected payments, do not have to pay any income tax.