Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will have discussions with the credit union movement on expanding their role in offering financial services to individuals.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government has made clear its strong support for the credit union sector, recognising the value that credit unions bring to their members in local communities across the country in providing products and affordable credit. It continues to engage regularly with this sector to understand the current barriers they face and consider further opportunities for growth.
The Chancellor announced new measures to support the growth of the credit union and mutuals sector in her Mansion House speech on 14 November. This included publishing a call for evidence on the potential to reform common bonds for credit unions in Great Britain, asking the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) to produce a report on the mutuals landscape by the end of 2025, and welcoming the establishment of an industry-led Mutual and Co-operative Business Council.
Responsibility for credit unions in Northern Ireland is a devolved matter for the Northern Ireland Executive. Treasury officials engage with their counterparts in the Department for the Economy.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the number of credit unions operating in (a) London and (b) England.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government has made clear its strong support for the credit union sector, recognising the value that credit unions bring to their members in local communities across the country in providing savings products and affordable credit.
The Chancellor announced new measures to support the growth of the credit union and mutuals sector in her Mansion House speech on 14 November. This included publishing a call for evidence on the potential to reform common bonds for credit unions in Great Britain, asking the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) to produce a report on the mutuals landscape by the end of 2025, and welcoming the establishment of an industry-led Mutual and Co-operative Business Council. Together, these actions reinforce the Government’s commitment to support the credit union and mutuals sector, and help it grow to drive innovation and economic growth across the country.
The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) publishes quarterly statistics relating to credit unions in the United Kingdom. According to this latest data, there are currently 140 credit unions operating in England. Whilst HM Treasury does not hold data on the number of credit unions operating in London, all registered mutuals are listed publicly on the Mutuals Public Register, which is managed by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to increase the number of credit unions operating in England.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government has made clear its strong support for the credit union sector, recognising the value that credit unions bring to their members in local communities across the country in providing savings products and affordable credit.
The Chancellor announced new measures to support the growth of the credit union and mutuals sector in her Mansion House speech on 14 November. This included publishing a call for evidence on the potential to reform common bonds for credit unions in Great Britain, asking the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) to produce a report on the mutuals landscape by the end of 2025, and welcoming the establishment of an industry-led Mutual and Co-operative Business Council. Together, these actions reinforce the Government’s commitment to support the credit union and mutuals sector, and help it grow to drive innovation and economic growth across the country.
The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) publishes quarterly statistics relating to credit unions in the United Kingdom. According to this latest data, there are currently 140 credit unions operating in England. Whilst HM Treasury does not hold data on the number of credit unions operating in London, all registered mutuals are listed publicly on the Mutuals Public Register, which is managed by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support new co-operatives and mutuals.
Answered by Tulip Siddiq
The Government recognises the important contribution of co-operatives and mutuals to the economy, serving local communities around the UK and ensuring the UK has a diverse business sector with their model of shared ownership. According to the Co-operative and Mutual Economy Report 2024, there are currently 9,342 mutual and co-operative businesses in the UK, with an annual income of £165.7 billion.
The Government is committed to unlocking the full potential of the mutual and co-operative sector to support inclusive growth and will work with the sector to ensure it is fully supported to grow.
To help ensure co-operatives legislation is meeting the needs of co-operative and community benefit societies, the Government is funding the Law Commission’s independent review of the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014. This will consider ways to update and modernise the Act.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department plans to take to support co-operatives.
Answered by Tulip Siddiq
The Government recognises the important contribution that co-operatives make to the economy, serving local communities around the UK and ensuring the UK has a diverse business sector with their model of shared ownership. Co-operatives, alongside other mutuals in the UK, had combined annual revenues of £87.9 billion in 2022, equating to 3.5% of UK GDP.
The Government is committed to supporting the UK’s co-operative and mutuals sector and will be working closely with the sector to address any barriers that it currently faces.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the contribution of the cooperative sector to the UK economy.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
The Government is committed to having a thriving co-operative sector and creating a modern and supportive business environment in the UK. The Government acknowledges the vital contribution co-operatives make to the economy, serving local communities up and down the UK. The latest Co-operative and Mutual Economy Report 2023, conducted by the trade body Co-operatives UK, found that co-operatives generated a combined, annual turnover of £40.9 billion, a 3.7% increase from 2022 levels.
The Government has taken significant steps to support the co-operative sector in recent years. For example, the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 helped cut through the legal complexity involved in running a co-operative, improving their competitiveness. Additionally, at Budget 2021, the Government announced the £150m Community Ownership Fund. This allows community groups to bid for up to £2 million matched-funding to help them buy or take over local community assets at risk of being lost and run them as community-owned businesses, supporting co-operative entrepreneurship. To date, 195 projects across the UK have benefitted from the fund.
Earlier this year, the Government-supported Co-operatives, Mutuals, and Friendly Societies Act 2023 came into force, which grants HM Treasury the power to bring forward regulations to give those mutuals further flexibility in determining for themselves the best strategies for their business regarding their surplus capital.
Furthermore, the Government also aims to continue to develop a modern and supportive business environment to set co-operatives and mutuals up for success. The Government has commissioned the Law Commission to conduct reviews of the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 and the Friendly Societies Act 1992. These reviews will investigate necessary changes to legislation that will help support co-operatives and friendly societies in their future growth and success.
Asked by: Lord Grocott (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many private members’ bills starting in (1) the House of Commons, and (2) the House of Lords, have received Royal Assent since the 2019 general election.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
Details on how many private members' bills starting in both the House of Commons and House of Lords from the 2019 General Election to the 2021-22 session are available on the Parliament website at: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn04568/. In the current parliamentary session the following private members' bills have reached Royal Assent:
Bill title | House of introduction |
Ballot Secrecy Bill | Lords |
Carer’s Leave Bill | Commons |
Child Support Collection (Domestic Abuse) Bill | Commons |
Co-operatives, Mutuals and Friendly Societies Bill | Commons |
Electricity Transmission (Compensation) Bill (formerly Electricity and Gas Transmission (Compensation) Bill) | Commons |
Employment (Allocation of Tips) Bill | Commons |
Mobile Homes (Pitch Fees) Bill | Commons |
Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Bill | Commons |
Offenders (Day of Release from Detention) Bill | Commons |
Pensions Dashboards (Prohibition of Indemnification) Bill | Commons |
Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Bill | Commons |
Shark Fins Bill | Commons |
Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Bill | Commons |
In addition, the following private members' bills are awaiting Royal Assent. These bills originated in the House of Commons:
Child Support (Enforcement) Bill
Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill
Equipment Theft (Prevention) Bill
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many officials in his Department work on policies relating to mutual societies.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
The Treasury allocates resources based on the priorities of the department, and officials within the Financial Services Group of HM Treasury provide advice to ministers on issues related to the mutuals sector. Resourcing is kept under regular review to ensure priorities are delivered.
The government recognises the value that mutuals bring to the UK economy. That is why we are taking appropriate steps to ensure that the legislative framework in which mutuals operate under is both a modern and supportive business environment.
As part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill, the Government is amending existing legislation so that credit unions in Great Britain can offer a wider range of products and services. In due course the government will also bring forward legislation to amend the Building Societies Act 1986, which will give building societies further flexibility in raising funds and modernise corporate governance requirements.
In addition, the government is supporting Sir Mark Hendrick’s Private Member’s Bill which would allow co-operatives, mutual insurers, and friendly societies further flexibility in determining for themselves the best strategies for their business, relating to their surplus capital and restrictions on the use of these assets.
Furthermore, the government is in active discussions with the Law Commission on options to proceed with a review of both the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 and the Friendly Societies Act 1992 with a view to launching the reviews in the next financial year.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an estimate of the number of registered co-operatives that operated in the UK in each year since 2010.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
Annual statistics on credit unions in the UK are publicly available from the Bank of England website. Details of registered co-operative societies and the years they are or have been active can be accessed from the Mutuals Public Register.
Additionally, the latest Co-op Economy Report reveals that the number of independent co-operatives in the UK grew by 1.2% in 2020, despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. There are now over 7,000 independent co-operatives, with more than 250,000 employees and nearly 14 million UK co-operative members. These co-operatives contributed £39.7 billion to the UK economy in 2021, up by £1.1 billion from 2020.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an estimate of the number of credit unions operating in the UK in each year since 2010.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
Annual statistics on credit unions in the UK are publicly available from the Bank of England website. Details of registered co-operative societies and the years they are or have been active can be accessed from the Mutuals Public Register.
Additionally, the latest Co-op Economy Report reveals that the number of independent co-operatives in the UK grew by 1.2% in 2020, despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. There are now over 7,000 independent co-operatives, with more than 250,000 employees and nearly 14 million UK co-operative members. These co-operatives contributed £39.7 billion to the UK economy in 2021, up by £1.1 billion from 2020.