Written questions by Shannon.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of including renewable liquid gases in the green taxonomy.

The purpose of implementing a green taxonomy is to support investment into activities aligned with sustainability goals, and to mitigate greenwashing.However, the government is aware that taxonomies can be complex in practice, and feedback on their value is mixed. The government has therefore published a consultation to gather views on the value case for launching a UK Green Taxonomy as part of a wider sustainable finance framework.At this stage in the consultation process, the government is not seeking feedback on the detail of the sectors for inclusion. Instead, the government is focused on the bigger picture of whether and how this can be a useful tool for companies and investors.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of recent tax increases on small and medium businesses.

The Government inherited a very difficult fiscal situation and so we are asking businesses to contribute to fixing the public finances and our public services. At the Autumn Budget, the Government announced tax reforms to support smaller businesses. Including, more than doubling the employment allowance to £10,500; committing in the Corporate Tax Roadmap to maintain the Small Profits Rate and marginal relief at their current rates and thresholds, as well as maintaining the Annual Investment Allowance; and freezing the small businesses multiplier for 2025/26. In the transition to permanently lower business rates burden for the high street, through lower multipliers for Retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) businesses from April 2026, RHL business rates relief will also be extended for one year at 40% (up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business). If the Government had not acted, the current RHL relief would have ended entirely in April 2025.

Whether she has had discussions with mortgage providers on the availability of fixed term mortgages to first time buyers.

The Government is regularly in contact with mortgage lenders on all aspects of their business, including the provision of finance to first time buyers. This Government will turn the dream of owning a home into a reality by fixing the planning system and building 1.5 million more homes, as well as helping buyers who are struggling to save for a large deposit by introducing a permanent Mortgage Guarantee Scheme.

If she will make an estimate of the proportion of the reduction in fuel duty made in 2022 that was passed on to consumers by petrol stations.

Fuel duty rates were first reduced by 5p in March 2022 by the government at the time. The Competition and Markets Authority’s Road Fuel Review into fuel prices, published on 8 July 2022, found that the 5p cut had largely been passed on to consumers. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government announced continued support for families and businesses, by extending the temporary 5p fuel duty cut for one year and cancelling the planned inflation increase for 2025-26. This maintains fuel duty rates at the levels set on 23 March 2022 for an additional 12 months and represents a saving of £59 for the average car driver in 2025-26.