Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of further regulating the fines chargeable by parking companies operating on private land.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Following the introduction of the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, the Government is taking action to improve the regulation of the private parking industry and is developing a new code of practice to ensure the best possible protection for motorists and parking companies alike.
We are currently considering the impact of any changes to parking charges levels and debt recovery fees before a decision is made on the appropriate level.
In due course it is the Government’s intention to consult on these elements of the code, as such we have recently concluded a call for evidence to make sure the consultation on parking charges and debt recovery fees is as well informed as possible.
The Government is working with both industry and consumer representatives to ensure the code comes into effect as quickly as possible.
Asked by: Earl of Shrewsbury (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the pricing structure of petrol and diesel fuel sold in motorway service stations; and what if any action they intend to take to ensure a fair pricing structure, which is competitive with off-motorway suppliers, is enforced.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Competition and Market Authority (CMA) found drivers without fuel cards pay more at motorway service stations due to limited competitive pressures. Differences in costs, including rent, staff wages and fuel volume sold also cause price variations.
This autumn, we will consult on CMA recommendations for a road fuel price open data scheme and elements of a monitoring function. The government has tabled amendments to the Digital Markets, Competition & Consumer Bill to give the CMA information gathering powers for the monitoring function. Upon Royal Assent of the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, smart data powers will be used to enact regulations for the open data scheme.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to increase sanctions on companies that approve credit applications for people subject to Court of Protection Orders.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Protecting vulnerable consumers is a key priority for the Government and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which regulates the consumer credit market.
Financial institutions are entitled to provide credit to individuals who have a Court of Protection Order. Approval of these applications are individualised in line with the principles of the Mental Capacity Act and FCA guidance which can found at: https://www.handbook.fca.org.uk/handbook/CONC/2/10.html.
The guidance makes clear that firms should take reasonable steps to ensure that they have suitable business practices and procedures in place for the fair treatment of customers who they understand, or reasonably suspect, have or may have a mental capacity limitation. This includes customers who are subject to Court of Protection Orders.
The FCA proactively monitors the market to ensure firms follow its rules and it has various methods to punish breaches. There is no limit on the fines it can levy and it can require firms to compensate consumers. In addition, consumers have recourse to the Financial Ombudsman Service for independent arbitration if they believe their formal complaint to a firm has not been dealt with satisfactorily.
Asked by: Kate Osamor (Independent - Edmonton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing an energy social tariff to assist disabled people with energy costs.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As the Government explores possible approaches to consumer protection from 2024, it is working with disability organisations, considering the costs for disabled people and assessing the need for specific support for disabled people using medical equipment in the home.
While energy prices are falling our Energy Price Guarantee remains in place to protect people until April next year. The Help for Households campaign includes numerous cost-of-living support schemes in 2023/2024, such as the Winter Fuel Payment, Warm Home Discount, Disability Cost of Living Payment and the Cost-of-Living Payment for those on means tested benefits which has increased from up to £650 in 2022/2023 to £900 in 2023/2024.
The Government continues to monitor the situation and will keep options under review, including with respect to the most vulnerable households.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to take steps with Cabinet colleagues to provide support to smallholder farmers in developing countries to meet the legal requirement to not contribute to deforestation under the Environment Act 2021.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK plays a leading role in supporting global efforts to protect and restore forest landscapes, driving international action to tackle deforestation and ensure forests are sustainably managed. This effort is underpinned by a commitment of £1.5 billion to international forests between 2021 and 2026.
The Government works with both businesses and smallholder farmers to improve sustainable practices and encourage forest-friendly business. The Investments in Forests and Sustainable Land Use programme (2015-2024) supports the development of new business models which provide jobs and livelihoods while protecting and restoring forests. The programme is implemented through a set of complementary interventions including Partnerships for Forests (P4F) (£120 million), which provides grant funding and technical assistance to catalyse investment into sustainable agriculture and forest management. To date, P4F has mobilised £1.25 billion in private investment into forests, brought 4.5 million hectares of land under sustainable management and directly benefitted over 250,000 people.
The UK’s Mobilising Finance for Forests programme is working to increase private investment in activities that create value from standing forests and/or incorporate forest protection and restoration into sustainable agricultural commodity production. This programme is complementary to P4F, targeting larger and more mature opportunities that will mobilise investment into sustainable land-use at scale.
The UK also supports companies in their transition to sustainable supply chains. The UK is a co-funder of the Tropical Forest Alliance, a public-private initiative hosted by the World Economic Forum which mobilises over 170 companies, governments and NGOs to tackle commodity-driven deforestation.
We also continue to work with consumer and producer country partners in forums such as the Forest, Agriculture, and Commodity and Trade (FACT) Dialogue, which the UK and Indonesia launched together as co-chairs in 2021. The FACT Dialogue convenes 28 major producers and consumers of internationally traded agricultural commodities to agree principles for collaboration and developed a Roadmap of actions which was launched at COP26, to protect forests and other ecosystems while promoting sustainable trade and development, in a way that respects all countries’ interests.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an estimate of the total amount banks have repaid customers that have been victims of (a) fraud and (b) payment scams.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government takes fraud and scams very seriously and is dedicated to protecting the public from this devastating crime. Tackling fraud and scams requires a unified and co-ordinated response from government, law enforcement and the private sector to better protect the public and businesses, reduce the impact on victims, and increase the disruption and prosecution of fraudsters.
According to data published by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) on 31 October, the fourteen largest payment service providers reimbursed a total of £237,219,623 of losses from authorised push payment (APP) fraud. Reimbursement rates varied significantly by firm. As part of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, the Government legislated to enable the PSR to mandate payment service providers to reimburse victims of APP scams. This will ensure that victims of APP scams are reimbursed on a more consistent basis and ensure greater consumer protection. The Government also intends to introduce legislation to allow payment service providers to slow down payments processing when there is a reasonable suspicion of fraud. The Government will introduce this legislation in due course.
Beyond this, the Government has taken significant action to address this issue. In May 2022, the Government published its fraud strategy, setting out a number of new measures. For example, the Government announced it will extend the ban on cold calling to cover all consumer financial services and products, and recently consulted on the design and scope of this ban. The Government has also taken action to address fraudulent activity being hosted online through the Online Safety Act 2023, which includes a new standalone duty requiring large internet firms to remove fraudulent content on their platforms.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department's policies to tackle bank (a) fraud and (b) scams.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government takes fraud and scams very seriously and is dedicated to protecting the public from this devastating crime. Tackling fraud and scams requires a unified and co-ordinated response from government, law enforcement and the private sector to better protect the public and businesses, reduce the impact on victims, and increase the disruption and prosecution of fraudsters.
According to data published by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) on 31 October, the fourteen largest payment service providers reimbursed a total of £237,219,623 of losses from authorised push payment (APP) fraud. Reimbursement rates varied significantly by firm. As part of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, the Government legislated to enable the PSR to mandate payment service providers to reimburse victims of APP scams. This will ensure that victims of APP scams are reimbursed on a more consistent basis and ensure greater consumer protection. The Government also intends to introduce legislation to allow payment service providers to slow down payments processing when there is a reasonable suspicion of fraud. The Government will introduce this legislation in due course.
Beyond this, the Government has taken significant action to address this issue. In May 2022, the Government published its fraud strategy, setting out a number of new measures. For example, the Government announced it will extend the ban on cold calling to cover all consumer financial services and products, and recently consulted on the design and scope of this ban. The Government has also taken action to address fraudulent activity being hosted online through the Online Safety Act 2023, which includes a new standalone duty requiring large internet firms to remove fraudulent content on their platforms.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to introduce interim measures to protect buy now pay later borrowers.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Buy-Now Pay-Later (BNPL) is an interest-free product which gives consumers a time-limited means of spreading payments for their purchases. When used responsibly and provided affordably it can be a helpful way for consumers to manage their finances and make purchases.
Many consumers are attracted to BNPL because of its interest-free nature, which the Government considers makes it inherently lower risk than most other types of credit. The FCA’s most recent Financial Lives survey found that 46% of people of who had used BNPL in the past 12 months chose it because it was interest-free. In addition, the survey found that 88% of users found it easy to keep track of their repayments.
As such, BNPL represents a popular alternative to traditional, interest-bearing forms of credit like credit cards and personal loans. For some financially vulnerable consumers it may also provide an alternative to high-cost and illegal lending. Further data from the FCA shows that around 14 million adults used BNPL in the six months to January 2023 and that the average outstanding BNPL balance is low at £236.
The Government’s consultation on proposed draft legislation to bring Buy-Now Pay-Later into regulation closed in April. Since then the Government has been carefully considering stakeholder feedback. The Government will publish a response to the consultation once it is finalised in due course.
In the meantime, BNPL users already benefit from broader consumer protection legislation, including on advertising and unfair contract terms. The FCA also has existing powers to take action against firms, which it used as recently as Tuesday 31 October to secure changes to firms' potentially unfair and unclear contract terms. Some BNPL firms have also introduced a credit ‘opt-out’ function for their customers.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing an opt-out option for members of pension schemes with safeguarded benefits who are required to take advice under section 48 of the Pension Schemes Act 2015.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The overarching objective of the advice requirement is to ensure that members understand the financial implications of transferring to a scheme with flexible benefits. The process enables a clear view of the choices available to the individual and the longer term risks attached to accessing flexible benefits.
The government has to consider the needs of all pension savers regardless of their individual circumstances and it believes that enabling members to make informed investment decisions will yield greater long term financial stability for the individual. It is not therefore policy to introduce an opt out option to this part of the transfer process.
In forming this view, DWP has engaged with pensions industry bodies, the regulators and consumer groups to review The Pension Schemes Act 2015 (Transitional Provisions and Appropriate Independent Advice) Regulations 2017. The review considered how the advice requirement is working in practice and if there are any unintended consequences. A report of the review was published in June 2023 and is available on gov.uk.
Whilst the report concluded that the existing measures remain appropriate and effective, the department will continue to work closely with HMT and FCA to consider changes to the regulations that will improve the transfer process whilst ensuring that members continue to receive an appropriate level of protection and support.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester, Withington)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Powering Up Britain: Energy Security Plan, published in March 2023, when she plans to consult on options for a new approach to consumer protection.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As set out in Powering Up Britain: Energy Security Plan, we are exploring the best approach to consumer protection, as part of wider retail market reforms. The government continues to monitor the situation and will keep options under review, including with respect to the most vulnerable households.