Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to suspend interest on outstanding corporation tax bills for those who have had to defer payment due to the covid-19 outbreak.

The Government has announced an unprecedented package of support for businesses and individuals during the Covid-19 outbreak.

This includes the deferral of certain VAT and Self-Assessment payments in 2020-21, and the waiving of associated interest and penalties.

HMRC have scaled up their Time to Pay (TTP) service, where individual and business taxpayers can agree tailored plans to defer certain tax payments due and repay them over an agreed period of time. These arrangements can include any tax or duty administered by HMRC, including Corporation Tax (CT). Interest will continue to accrue on TTP arrangements including those for CT, in the usual way, to cover the costs to Government of late payment.

Incorporated businesses may have access to a wide range of Government support to help with finances and cashflow, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, and the Small Business Grant Scheme.