Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to change the rate of VAT applied to newspapers.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
There are no current plans to change the rate of VAT applied to:
- Magazines
- Renovating a dwelling that has been empty for at least two years
- Smoking cessation products
- Installation of mobility aids for the elderly for use in domestic accommodation
- Supplies of magnetic tape adapted for recording speech for blind people
- Motorcycle helmets that meet safety standards
- Cycle helmets marked CE
- Maps and charts
- Printed music
- Newspapers
- Books
- Food of a kind used for human consumption
- Children’s clothes
- Children’s shoes
- Clothes for babies
- Equipment for blind or partially sighted people
- Incontinence products
- Low Vision aids
- Emptying domestic septic tanks and cesspools
- Water supplied to households.
There are limits to the changes the Government can make to the VAT treatment of these goods under the framework of European law. While the UK is in the transition period, all existing EU VAT rules will continue to apply. Although all taxes are kept under review, there are no plans to change these reliefs at this time.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to change the rate of VAT applied to books.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
There are no current plans to change the rate of VAT applied to:
- Magazines
- Renovating a dwelling that has been empty for at least two years
- Smoking cessation products
- Installation of mobility aids for the elderly for use in domestic accommodation
- Supplies of magnetic tape adapted for recording speech for blind people
- Motorcycle helmets that meet safety standards
- Cycle helmets marked CE
- Maps and charts
- Printed music
- Newspapers
- Books
- Food of a kind used for human consumption
- Children’s clothes
- Children’s shoes
- Clothes for babies
- Equipment for blind or partially sighted people
- Incontinence products
- Low Vision aids
- Emptying domestic septic tanks and cesspools
- Water supplied to households.
There are limits to the changes the Government can make to the VAT treatment of these goods under the framework of European law. While the UK is in the transition period, all existing EU VAT rules will continue to apply. Although all taxes are kept under review, there are no plans to change these reliefs at this time.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to change the rate of VAT applied to magazines.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
There are no current plans to change the rate of VAT applied to:
- Magazines
- Renovating a dwelling that has been empty for at least two years
- Smoking cessation products
- Installation of mobility aids for the elderly for use in domestic accommodation
- Supplies of magnetic tape adapted for recording speech for blind people
- Motorcycle helmets that meet safety standards
- Cycle helmets marked CE
- Maps and charts
- Printed music
- Newspapers
- Books
- Food of a kind used for human consumption
- Children’s clothes
- Children’s shoes
- Clothes for babies
- Equipment for blind or partially sighted people
- Incontinence products
- Low Vision aids
- Emptying domestic septic tanks and cesspools
- Water supplied to households.
There are limits to the changes the Government can make to the VAT treatment of these goods under the framework of European law. While the UK is in the transition period, all existing EU VAT rules will continue to apply. Although all taxes are kept under review, there are no plans to change these reliefs at this time.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to change the rate of VAT applied to electricity for domestic and residential use or for non-business use by a charity.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Under the current VAT rules, electricity for domestic use is subject to the reduced rate of 5 per cent. Although all taxes are kept under constant review, the Government has no current plans to change the VAT treatment of electricity.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to change the rate of VAT applied to ship repairs and maintenance.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The repair and maintenance of qualifying ships and aircraft already benefit from zero-rating of VAT; further information is contained in VAT notice 744C. There are no plans to change the VAT treatment of ships and aircraft at present.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to change the rate of VAT applied to aircraft repair and maintenance.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The repair and maintenance of qualifying ships and aircraft already benefit from zero-rating of VAT; further information is contained in VAT notice 744C. There are no plans to change the VAT treatment of ships and aircraft at present.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to change the rate of VAT applied to the renovation or alteration of empty residential premises.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Consumers already benefit from a reduced VAT rate of 5 per cent on residential construction under certain conditions. This includes conversions of buildings from one use to another, and the renovation of properties that have been empty for two years or more prior to the renovation work.
Going further would be very expensive: reducing VAT on all property renovation, repairs and improvements would cost the Exchequer approximately £6 billion per year. Although all taxes are kept under review, the Government has no plans to change the VAT treatment of construction at this time.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with representatives of the gambling industry on tackling money laundering in that industry; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by John Glen
The UK’s anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) supervisory regime is comprehensive, seeking to regulate and supervise those firms most at risk from money laundering and terrorist financing. In December 2018, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global standard-setter for AML/CTF, found that the UK had one of the toughest systems for combatting money laundering and terrorist financing of any country it has assessed to date.
The Gambling Commission is the supervisory authority for casinos under the Money Laundering Regulations (MLRs). The FATF Mutual Evaluation Report found that the Gambling Commission had a good understanding of the money laundering and terrorist financing risks in the gambling sector and applied a risk-based approach to supervision.
The Gambling Commission supervises the casino sector and regulates the gambling industry as a whole. It conducts a yearly money laundering and terrorist financing risk assessment based on emerging and inherent risks in the gambling industry. This evaluation informs its supervisory and regulatory activity ensuring it is targeted, relevant and proportionate. In the reporting period of 6 April 2018 - 5 April 2019, the Gambling Commission issued financial penalties worth £17 million in total against its supervised population for cases that included AML/CTF failings.
In his time as Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chancellor has not had personal discussions with the Home Secretary, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport or representatives of the gambling industry on money laundering, though there are regular official level engagements focussed on identifying these risks and demonstrating evidence of continued improvements in their effectiveness, as there are with all AML supervisors.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the (a) Home Secretary and (b) Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on tackling money laundering in the gambling industry; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by John Glen
The UK’s anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) supervisory regime is comprehensive, seeking to regulate and supervise those firms most at risk from money laundering and terrorist financing. In December 2018, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global standard-setter for AML/CTF, found that the UK had one of the toughest systems for combatting money laundering and terrorist financing of any country it has assessed to date.
The Gambling Commission is the supervisory authority for casinos under the Money Laundering Regulations (MLRs). The FATF Mutual Evaluation Report found that the Gambling Commission had a good understanding of the money laundering and terrorist financing risks in the gambling sector and applied a risk-based approach to supervision.
The Gambling Commission supervises the casino sector and regulates the gambling industry as a whole. It conducts a yearly money laundering and terrorist financing risk assessment based on emerging and inherent risks in the gambling industry. This evaluation informs its supervisory and regulatory activity ensuring it is targeted, relevant and proportionate. In the reporting period of 6 April 2018 - 5 April 2019, the Gambling Commission issued financial penalties worth £17 million in total against its supervised population for cases that included AML/CTF failings.
In his time as Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chancellor has not had personal discussions with the Home Secretary, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport or representatives of the gambling industry on money laundering, though there are regular official level engagements focussed on identifying these risks and demonstrating evidence of continued improvements in their effectiveness, as there are with all AML supervisors.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary and the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on effective data sharing between gambling operators to tackle money laundering in the gambling industry; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by John Glen
The UK’s anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) supervisory regime is comprehensive, seeking to regulate and supervise those firms most at risk from money laundering and terrorist financing. In December 2018, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global standard-setter for AML/CTF, found that the UK had one of the toughest systems for combatting money laundering and terrorist financing of any country it has assessed to date.
The Gambling Commission is the supervisory authority for casinos under the Money Laundering Regulations (MLRs). The FATF Mutual Evaluation Report found that the Gambling Commission had a good understanding of the money laundering and terrorist financing risks in the gambling sector and applied a risk-based approach to supervision.
The Gambling Commission supervises the casino sector and regulates the gambling industry as a whole. It conducts a yearly money laundering and terrorist financing risk assessment based on emerging and inherent risks in the gambling industry. This evaluation informs its supervisory and regulatory activity ensuring it is targeted, relevant and proportionate. In the reporting period of 6 April 2018 - 5 April 2019, the Gambling Commission issued financial penalties worth £17 million in total against its supervised population for cases that included AML/CTF failings.
In his time as Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chancellor has not had personal discussions with the Home Secretary, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport or representatives of the gambling industry on money laundering, though there are regular official level engagements focussed on identifying these risks and demonstrating evidence of continued improvements in their effectiveness, as there are with all AML supervisors.