Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to reduce the Lifetime ISA withdrawal penalty.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The LISA is designed to support people to achieve the aspiration of homeownership, or to build up savings for their later life. LISA funds, including any Government bonus, can be withdrawn for the purchase of a first home under £450,000, in the case of terminal illness or from the age of 60.
Although the government recognises that some individuals may wish to access their LISA savings for purposes other than those listed above, the Government considers that the charge is needed to protect the LISA’s status as a long-term savings product.
Removing or reducing the withdrawal charge would not be consistent with this and would encourage the use of LISAs in ways for which they were not intended.
The Government keeps all aspects of the savings tax regime under review.
Asked by: Ian Lavery (Labour - Wansbeck)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing additional financial support to people who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness and are unable to work.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The department is committed to supporting people nearing the end of life. The main way the department does this is through special benefit rules, called the Special Rules for End of Life. These enable people who are nearing the end of their lives to get faster, easier access to certain benefits, and in most cases receive the highest rate of benefit, without needing to attend a medical assessment or serve waiting periods.
From 3rd April 2023, individuals with 12-months or less to live, where they meet the relevant eligibility criteria, ate able to claim Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, Disability Living Allowance, and Attendance Allowance, under the Special Rules for End of Life. These changes mean that thousands of people nearing the end of life are able to claim fast track financial support from the benefits system.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to simplify the process by which families of children with terminal health conditions may access Child Trust Funds.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
HMRC has worked closely with Child Trust Fund (CTF) providers, the wider industry and the Money and Pensions Service to ensure that young people are aware of, and can access, their CTFs.
HMRC has:
· required CTF providers to write to their customers informing them of their options in their 17th year and to provide statements annually after the account holder turns 18.
· worked closely with CTF providers to ensure they are meeting regulatory requirements to communicate with CTF customers approaching and reaching maturity.
· developed and improved the ‘Find my CTF’ service on GOV.uk to help customers locate their account.
· added information to the National Insurance Notification (NINO) letter, which is sent out prior to a child’s 16th birthday, to raise awareness of the CTF scheme with children in the appropriate age bracket
· issued a range of communications through regular press releases and social media posts.
Children with maturing CTFs also receive a significant amount of written information pertaining to their account directly from their account provider.
Information on the number of CTFs that have matured and were recorded as continuing as of the 5th of April 2021 is available in HMRC Annual Savings Statistics: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-savings-statistics-2022.
We cannot provide an estimate of the number of mature continuing CTFs by region, disability, or ethnicity as we do not hold that data.
Estimates of the number of mature continuing CTFs by gender or income decile can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.
The scheme has been closed to new entrants for over 12 years. In this time HMRC has been focusing resources on evaluating and improving existing schemes. We will continue to keep the need to evaluate old schemes under review.
The process for accessing CTF accounts for terminally ill children is kept as simple as possible, while protecting the interests of the child. Only a person with parental responsibility can take money out of a terminally ill child’s account.
To access the CTF of a child with a terminal illness, the parent or guardian completes an application form on Gov.uk and provides evidence of receipt of terminal illness benefit from the Department of Work and Pensions or Social Security Scotland. If they are not receiving any such benefit, they can provide evidence from a medical practitioner about the child’s illness.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to increase children's and young people's awareness of Child Trust Funds.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
HMRC has worked closely with Child Trust Fund (CTF) providers, the wider industry and the Money and Pensions Service to ensure that young people are aware of, and can access, their CTFs.
HMRC has:
· required CTF providers to write to their customers informing them of their options in their 17th year and to provide statements annually after the account holder turns 18.
· worked closely with CTF providers to ensure they are meeting regulatory requirements to communicate with CTF customers approaching and reaching maturity.
· developed and improved the ‘Find my CTF’ service on GOV.uk to help customers locate their account.
· added information to the National Insurance Notification (NINO) letter, which is sent out prior to a child’s 16th birthday, to raise awareness of the CTF scheme with children in the appropriate age bracket
· issued a range of communications through regular press releases and social media posts.
Children with maturing CTFs also receive a significant amount of written information pertaining to their account directly from their account provider.
Information on the number of CTFs that have matured and were recorded as continuing as of the 5th of April 2021 is available in HMRC Annual Savings Statistics: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-savings-statistics-2022.
We cannot provide an estimate of the number of mature continuing CTFs by region, disability, or ethnicity as we do not hold that data.
Estimates of the number of mature continuing CTFs by gender or income decile can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.
The scheme has been closed to new entrants for over 12 years. In this time HMRC has been focusing resources on evaluating and improving existing schemes. We will continue to keep the need to evaluate old schemes under review.
The process for accessing CTF accounts for terminally ill children is kept as simple as possible, while protecting the interests of the child. Only a person with parental responsibility can take money out of a terminally ill child’s account.
To access the CTF of a child with a terminal illness, the parent or guardian completes an application form on Gov.uk and provides evidence of receipt of terminal illness benefit from the Department of Work and Pensions or Social Security Scotland. If they are not receiving any such benefit, they can provide evidence from a medical practitioner about the child’s illness.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the National Audit Office report entitled Investigation into Child Trust Funds published on 14 March 2023, for what reason the Government has not planned to commission additional data collection to enable an evaluation of the Child Trust Fund scheme.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
HMRC has worked closely with Child Trust Fund (CTF) providers, the wider industry and the Money and Pensions Service to ensure that young people are aware of, and can access, their CTFs.
HMRC has:
· required CTF providers to write to their customers informing them of their options in their 17th year and to provide statements annually after the account holder turns 18.
· worked closely with CTF providers to ensure they are meeting regulatory requirements to communicate with CTF customers approaching and reaching maturity.
· developed and improved the ‘Find my CTF’ service on GOV.uk to help customers locate their account.
· added information to the National Insurance Notification (NINO) letter, which is sent out prior to a child’s 16th birthday, to raise awareness of the CTF scheme with children in the appropriate age bracket
· issued a range of communications through regular press releases and social media posts.
Children with maturing CTFs also receive a significant amount of written information pertaining to their account directly from their account provider.
Information on the number of CTFs that have matured and were recorded as continuing as of the 5th of April 2021 is available in HMRC Annual Savings Statistics: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-savings-statistics-2022.
We cannot provide an estimate of the number of mature continuing CTFs by region, disability, or ethnicity as we do not hold that data.
Estimates of the number of mature continuing CTFs by gender or income decile can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.
The scheme has been closed to new entrants for over 12 years. In this time HMRC has been focusing resources on evaluating and improving existing schemes. We will continue to keep the need to evaluate old schemes under review.
The process for accessing CTF accounts for terminally ill children is kept as simple as possible, while protecting the interests of the child. Only a person with parental responsibility can take money out of a terminally ill child’s account.
To access the CTF of a child with a terminal illness, the parent or guardian completes an application form on Gov.uk and provides evidence of receipt of terminal illness benefit from the Department of Work and Pensions or Social Security Scotland. If they are not receiving any such benefit, they can provide evidence from a medical practitioner about the child’s illness.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an estimate of the number of account holders with unclaimed mature Child Trust Funds broken down by (a) region, (b) gender, (c) ethnicity, (d) disability and (e) income decile.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
HMRC has worked closely with Child Trust Fund (CTF) providers, the wider industry and the Money and Pensions Service to ensure that young people are aware of, and can access, their CTFs.
HMRC has:
· required CTF providers to write to their customers informing them of their options in their 17th year and to provide statements annually after the account holder turns 18.
· worked closely with CTF providers to ensure they are meeting regulatory requirements to communicate with CTF customers approaching and reaching maturity.
· developed and improved the ‘Find my CTF’ service on GOV.uk to help customers locate their account.
· added information to the National Insurance Notification (NINO) letter, which is sent out prior to a child’s 16th birthday, to raise awareness of the CTF scheme with children in the appropriate age bracket
· issued a range of communications through regular press releases and social media posts.
Children with maturing CTFs also receive a significant amount of written information pertaining to their account directly from their account provider.
Information on the number of CTFs that have matured and were recorded as continuing as of the 5th of April 2021 is available in HMRC Annual Savings Statistics: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-savings-statistics-2022.
We cannot provide an estimate of the number of mature continuing CTFs by region, disability, or ethnicity as we do not hold that data.
Estimates of the number of mature continuing CTFs by gender or income decile can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.
The scheme has been closed to new entrants for over 12 years. In this time HMRC has been focusing resources on evaluating and improving existing schemes. We will continue to keep the need to evaluate old schemes under review.
The process for accessing CTF accounts for terminally ill children is kept as simple as possible, while protecting the interests of the child. Only a person with parental responsibility can take money out of a terminally ill child’s account.
To access the CTF of a child with a terminal illness, the parent or guardian completes an application form on Gov.uk and provides evidence of receipt of terminal illness benefit from the Department of Work and Pensions or Social Security Scotland. If they are not receiving any such benefit, they can provide evidence from a medical practitioner about the child’s illness.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to help ensure that unclaimed mature Child Trust Funds are claimed by account holders.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
HMRC has worked closely with Child Trust Fund (CTF) providers, the wider industry and the Money and Pensions Service to ensure that young people are aware of, and can access, their CTFs.
HMRC has:
· required CTF providers to write to their customers informing them of their options in their 17th year and to provide statements annually after the account holder turns 18.
· worked closely with CTF providers to ensure they are meeting regulatory requirements to communicate with CTF customers approaching and reaching maturity.
· developed and improved the ‘Find my CTF’ service on GOV.uk to help customers locate their account.
· added information to the National Insurance Notification (NINO) letter, which is sent out prior to a child’s 16th birthday, to raise awareness of the CTF scheme with children in the appropriate age bracket
· issued a range of communications through regular press releases and social media posts.
Children with maturing CTFs also receive a significant amount of written information pertaining to their account directly from their account provider.
Information on the number of CTFs that have matured and were recorded as continuing as of the 5th of April 2021 is available in HMRC Annual Savings Statistics: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-savings-statistics-2022.
We cannot provide an estimate of the number of mature continuing CTFs by region, disability, or ethnicity as we do not hold that data.
Estimates of the number of mature continuing CTFs by gender or income decile can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.
The scheme has been closed to new entrants for over 12 years. In this time HMRC has been focusing resources on evaluating and improving existing schemes. We will continue to keep the need to evaluate old schemes under review.
The process for accessing CTF accounts for terminally ill children is kept as simple as possible, while protecting the interests of the child. Only a person with parental responsibility can take money out of a terminally ill child’s account.
To access the CTF of a child with a terminal illness, the parent or guardian completes an application form on Gov.uk and provides evidence of receipt of terminal illness benefit from the Department of Work and Pensions or Social Security Scotland. If they are not receiving any such benefit, they can provide evidence from a medical practitioner about the child’s illness.
Asked by: Alan Whitehead (Labour - Southampton, Test)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 18 November 2023 to Question 87713 on Individual Savings Accounts, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of abolishing the 25 per cent penalty on removing savings from Lifetime ISAs in the context of the affordability of housing for first time buyers where (a) the Lifetime ISA limit has remained at £450,000 and (b) house prices have increased 24 per cent between December 2016 and December 2021.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
LISA funds, including any government bonus, can be withdrawn for the purchase of a first home valued under £450,000, in the case of terminal illness or from age 60. Withdrawals for any other reason are subject to a 25% fee to recoups the government bonus and any interest or growth arising from it.
Data from the latest UK House Price Index demonstrates that the average price paid by first-time buyers is below the Lifetime ISA property price cap in all regions of the UK except for Inner London, where the average price paid is affected by Boroughs with very high property values. The Office for Budget Responsibility is also forecasting for house prices to fall by 9% by the end of 2024.
The Government keeps the operational aspects of the Lifetime ISA under review, as it does all aspects of the tax system, with any changes being announced at a fiscal event.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of 24/7 palliative care telephone advice lines for people with a terminal illness and their carers.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No assessment has been made. NHS England has published statutory guidance on palliative and end of life care to support commissioners with implementation of the Health and Care Act 2022. The guidance makes specific reference to commissioners defining how their services will meet population needs 24 hours a day, seven days a week (24/7). Furthermore, between December 2021 and March 2022, NHS England provided circa £4 million to support 24/7 and single point of contact specialist palliative care support and advice services in local areas.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in how many and what proportion of cases in which there was mandatory reconsideration of a Personal Independence Payment assessment was the resulting points award the same as the points award in the initial decision.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
For Personal Independence Payment (PIP) initial decisions made in the period 1st July 2016 to 30th June 2022 there were 595,500 Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) outcomes where the total points score was the same as that at the initial decision. This equates to 73% of the decided MRs relating to those initial decisions. For some cases, points scores are missing from the data and so these have not been included.
Please note: