Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the UK Mortgage Prisoners Support Group on the (a) depth and (b) severity of the situation people unable to move out of high interest loans are facing.
Answered by Richard Fuller - Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Ministers last met with UK Mortgage Prisoners earlier this year and exchange regular correspondence with them.
The Government has worked with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on interventions to help mortgage prisoners switch. Resources have also been put in place so that mortgage prisoners can understand their options better, including their ability to switch, and access guidance through MoneyHelper. These resources can be found online at: https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/homes/buying-a-home/help-for-mortgage-prisoners.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits to consumers of extending the Rural Fuel Duty Relief scheme to (a) Ynys Môn constituency and (b) other rural parts of Wales.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Rural Fuel Duty Relief gives support to petrol and diesel users by compensating fuel retailers in some rural areas. The criteria for the scheme are set out in a public notice that can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rural-duty-relief-scheme-notice-2001.
At Spring Statement 2022 in response to fuel prices reaching record levels, the government announced a temporary 12-month cut to duty on petrol and diesel of 5p per litre. This is the largest cash-terms cut across all fuel duty rates at once, ever, and is only the second time in 20 years that main rates of petrol and diesel have been cut. This cut represents savings for households and businesses worth around £2.4 billion in 2022-23.
The government has no current plans to revise Rural Fuel Duty Relief, but keeps all taxes under review.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to reduce fuel costs for essential services and industries; and if he will bring forward a fuel duty rebate for essential services and industries to help reduce costs in supply chains.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
At Spring Statement 2022 in response to fuel prices reaching record levels, the government announced a temporary 12-month cut to duty on petrol and diesel of 5p per litre.
This is the largest cash-terms cut across all fuel duty rates at once, ever, and is only the second time in 20 years that main rates of petrol and diesel have been cut. This cut represents savings for households and businesses worth around £2.4 billion in 2022-23.
All taxes, including fuel duty, remain under review.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a further cut in fuel duty to support consumers.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
At Spring Statement 2022 in response to fuel prices reaching record levels, the government announced a temporary 12-month cut to duty on petrol and diesel of 5p per litre.
This is the largest cash-terms cut across all fuel duty rates at once, ever, and is only the second time in 20 years that main rates of petrol and diesel have been cut. This cut represents savings for households and businesses worth around £2.4 billion in 2022-23.
All taxes, including fuel duty, remain under review.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to help people who live in rural communities with the cost of domestic heating oil when alternative options for heating are limited as a result of lack of connection to the gas grid or there is a limited competitive market for domestic heating oil supply as a result of the remote location.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
On 26 May 2022 the Chancellor announced £15 billion of additional support for households struggling with the cost of living, particularly targeted at those with the greatest need.
This includes a doubling of the Energy Bills Support Scheme, providing an additional £200 to households that will not be recovered through higher bills in future years. This support extends to heating oil consumers, as long as they are also domestic electricity customers.
The Government is also providing a £650 one-off cost of living payment to households on means-tested benefits. Pensioner households will be eligible for a £300 cost of living payment, and individuals receiving extra disability benefits will also receive a £150 disability cost of living payment. To support people who need additional help, the Government is providing an extra £500 million of local support, via the Household Support Fund, which will be extended from this October to March 2023.
This package builds on the £22 billion package of support announced previously, with government support for the cost of living now totalling over £37 billion this year. This does not include continued financial support which remains available for heating oil customers with energy bills, if eligible, through the Warm Home Discount, Winter Fuel Payment and Cold Weather Payment schemes.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of using a proportion of VAT accruing to the Exchequer from the rise in fuel prices to help low income households with the cost of living.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
Increases in VAT per litre of fuel from rising prices are likely to be largely offset by reductions in VAT on other items if households have less to spend on these items, given higher fuel expenditure and a fixed budget. Therefore, this would not lead to a significant increase in overall VAT receipts. The Office for Budget Responsibility now forecasts lower VAT receipts for this year, 2022-23, than they did in Autumn 2021.
The Government understands how the rising cost of living is making life harder for people. These are global challenges. However, as set out in the Spring Statement 2022, the Government is providing support worth over £22 billion in 2022-23 to help families with these pressures.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to monitor the UK's electronic money institutions that are red flagged for money laundering risk; and what enforcement measures are being brought against those institutions through regulators and law enforcement agencies.
Answered by John Glen
The government is taking a robust and proactive approach to reducing illicit finance risks in the electronic money (e-money) sector. E-money institutions are subject to regulation and supervision by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 and The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017.
In December 2020, the government published the UK’s third National Risk Assessment (NRA) of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, which found that e-money services are at medium risk of money laundering. The NRA also noted the appeal of UK e-money institutions to money launderers looking to move illicit funds in and out of Russia and Eastern Europe.
Further UK law enforcement and the Financial Conduct Authority assessments of the money laundering risks in the e-money sector have observed that while vulnerabilities remain, -money institutions generally have well-developed live transaction monitoring and document verification processes.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is already taking steps to ensure firms operating in the sector have robust anti-financial crime controls, and has a number of powers at its disposal – including to request information, inspect a firm’s premises and, where necessary, to withdraw a firm’s registration – that can be used to ensure firms’ systems and controls are effective.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he (a) plans to cancel Ukraine's outstanding debts owed to the UK and (b) has had discussions with G7 finance ministers on a coordinated response to cancel Ukraine's debt obligations.
Answered by John Glen
The Chancellor continues to engage with G7 partners and International Financial Institutions on progressing current and future support to Ukraine. This includes a G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting held on 1 March with the Ukrainian Finance Minister.
Alongside our allies, we’ve hit Russia with the most severe package of sanctions it has ever seen and our economic and humanitarian support to Ukraine now totals around £400 million. This includes USD$100 million of funding to Ukraine through the World Bank Multi-Donor Trust Fund and that we stand ready to provide USD$500 million in loan guarantees to support Multilateral Development Bank lending. This support has also enabled a package to be agreed on 8 March of over $700m for direct fiscal support to Ukraine via the World Bank, to help mitigate direct economic impacts.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to extend the Rural Fuel Duty Relief scheme to (a) Ynys Môn constituency and (b) other rural parts of Wales.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Rural Fuel Duty Relief gives support to motorists by compensating fuel retailers in some rural areas with road fuel prices higher than the UK average.
In recognition of high prices at the pump and the fact that fuel represents a major cost for households and businesses, the Chancellor announced at the Autumn Budget 2021 that fuel duty would remain frozen for a twelfth consecutive year. This benefits consumers across the UK, and represents savings worth almost £8 billion over the next five years.
All taxes, including fuel duty, remain under review.