Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he had discussions with airports in Scotland on the potential merits of reinstating tax-free shopping for international visitors before the Spring Budget 2024.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel
The government published its next steps on tax-free shopping in the Spring Budget 2024 which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spring-budget-2024/spring-budget-2024-html.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he had discussions with airports on the potential merits of reinstating tax-free shopping for international visitors before the Spring Budget 2024.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel
The government published its next steps on tax-free shopping in the Spring Budget 2024 which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spring-budget-2024/spring-budget-2024-html.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has had recent discussions with airports in Scotland on the potential merits of reinstating tax-free shopping for international visitors.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel
The government published its next steps on tax-free shopping in the Spring Budget 2024 which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spring-budget-2024/spring-budget-2024-html.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has had recent discussions with airports on the potential merits of reinstating tax-free shopping for international visitors.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel
The government published its next steps on tax-free shopping in the Spring Budget 2024 which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spring-budget-2024/spring-budget-2024-html.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he plans to take to support UK (a) nationals and (b) businesses in Hong Kong, in the context of the external interference offence included in the Article 23 legislation passed in Hong Kong on 19 March 2024.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Hong Kong is required to ensure national security legislation complies with international standards and upholds rights and freedoms, as set out in the Joint Declaration, the Basic Law, and international law. Hong Kong's reputation as an international city was founded on respect for the rule of law, the independence of its institutions, its high degree of autonomy, and protection of the rights and freedoms afforded to all people living and working there. The Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, rushed through the legislative process despite its significance, will have far-reaching implications for all of these areas. That is why the Foreign Secretary on 19 March urged the Hong Kong authorities to respect rights and freedoms and act in accordance with its international commitments and legal obligations. We continue to analyse the extent of the impact this will have on British nationals and businesses in Hong Kong, and have updated our Travel Advice and Overseas Business Risk accordingly.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the potential impact of Article 23 on the (a) civil liberties and (b) human rights of people in Hong Kong.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Hong Kong is required to ensure national security legislation complies with international standards and upholds rights and freedoms, as set out in the Joint Declaration, the Basic Law, and international law. Hong Kong's reputation as an international city was founded on respect for the rule of law, the independence of its institutions, its high degree of autonomy, and protection of the rights and freedoms afforded to all people living and working there. The Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, rushed through the legislative process despite its significance, will have far-reaching implications for all of these areas. That is why the Foreign Secretary on 19 March urged the Hong Kong authorities to respect rights and freedoms and act in accordance with its international commitments and legal obligations. We continue to analyse the extent of the impact this will have on British nationals and businesses in Hong Kong, and have updated our Travel Advice and Overseas Business Risk accordingly.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions has he had with businesses on tax-free shopping for international visitors.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
As the UK’s economic and finance ministry, HM Treasury has regular discussions with representatives from a wide range of industries including travel and retail as well as business representative organisations covering many sectors.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many domestic overnight visits were undertaken by Ministers in (a) her Department and (b) its predecessor Department in each of the last three financial years; and what the cost of those visits was.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The number of overnight ministerial domestic visits undertaken over the last 3 financial years are as follows. The total costs provided are limited in scope, to only the Minister themselves, and to those booked through the Department's, and its predecessor's (the Department for International Trade), contracted travel provider, which covers costs of rail, air and hotel; where these costs were available.
Financial Year | Total number of overnight visits | Total Cost |
2021 - 2022 | 22 | £6,470.97 |
2022 - 2023 | 12 | £4,493.86 |
2023 - 2024 | 15 | £4,514.84 |
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many sailors have completed the Navy’s apprenticeship programme in each year since 2019; and in which sectors those apprenticeships were completed.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The following table provides the requested information:
Sector | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 * |
Business, Administration and Law | 75 | 52 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies | 846 | 578 | 362 | 801 | 274 |
Health, Public Services and Care | 414 | 303 | 245 | 387 | 106 |
Information and Communication Technology | 364 | 392 | 83 | 18 | 21 |
Leisure, Travel and Tourism | 9 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Retail and Commercial Enterprise | 110 | 39 | 54 | 113 | 45 |
Grand Total | 1,803 | 1,374 | 751 | 1,319 | 446 |
*Information covers period to date.
Information provided by Training Management Group, Directorate of Personnel and Training.
Asked by: Louise Haigh (Labour - Sheffield, Heeley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to page 73 of the Autumn Budget and Spending Review 2021, which policy areas will receive funding from the £1.8 billion allocated to core net zero spend relating to the Department for Transport for the 2024-25 financial year; and how much funding as been issued to each of those policy areas for the 2024-25 financial year.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The £1.8 billion allocated to the Department for Transport for the financial year 2024-25 in the 2021 Spending Review supports net zero policies across zero emission vehicles (including buses) and electric vehicle charging infrastructure, the bus transformation funding to support local authority Bus Service Improvement Plans, air quality improvement measures, active travel policies, City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements, Nexus Metrofleet in Newcastle, rail electrification, and the UK’s production of sustainable aviation fuel.
£333 million of the £1.8 billion was reallocated to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, (now the Department for Business and Trade), for the electrification of UK vehicle manufacturing and their supply chains, including through the Automotive Transformation Fund Programme.
The Department’s business planning process for 2024-25 financial year remains ongoing and final plans will be published in due course as per standard practice.