Every parliamentary written question tabled by Richard Holden this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 2,781–2,800 of 2,879 · this parliament
Pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2024 to Question 6585, how much and what proportion of the money accruing to the Treasury as a result of changes to eligibility for the Winter Fuel Payment she expects to come from people paying the (a) higher and (b) additional rate income tax.
The Government does not publish such data.
What steps she is taking to help reduce the impact of off-payroll working rules on the financial services sector and those working in it; and whether she plans to review those rules.
The Government keeps all tax policy and legislation under review. The Government and HMRC published both external research and internal analysis on the impacts of the 2021 reform in the private and voluntary sectors here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/short-term-effects-of-the-2021-off-payroll-working-rules-reform-for-private-and-voluntary-sector-organisations https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impacts-of-the-2021-off-payroll-working-rules-reform-in-the-private-and-voluntary-sectors/impacts-of-the-off-payroll-working-rules-reform-in-the-private-and-voluntary-sectors HMRC will continue to provide support and guidance to individuals and businesses operating the rules, including those in the financial services sector, and will continue to look for opportunities to improve the way these rules work in practice.
What steps she is taking to ensure that the children of those imprisoned are (a) identified and (b) offered support.
The Government recently published the first official statistics to estimate the number of children affected by parental imprisonment using administrative government data. It's estimated that between 1 October 2021 and 1 October 2022 there were around 193,000 children with a parent in prison. We fully recognise the importance of being able to identify children with a parent in prison to make sure they receive the support they need to flourish and thrive, which is why a commitment on this was included in our manifesto. The Ministry of Justice is working closely with the Department for Education to determine how to effectively identify these children and provide support for both them and for the parent in prison. The support will be informed by lessons from previous interventions and pilots, and engagement both with those with lived experience and organisations from the Voluntary, Charity and Social Enterprise sector.
What discussions she has had with the insurance industry on ensuring that premiums for homeowners do not increase substantially.
Treasury Ministers and officials have regular meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors on an ongoing basis.Insurers make commercial decisions about pricing and the terms of cover they offer based on their assessment of the relevant risks. This is usually informed by the insurer’s claims experience and other industry-wide statistics. The respective capabilities of insurers to assess risk is a key element on which they compete and the Government does not intend to intervene in these commercial decisions as this could damage competition in the market. However, the Government is determined that insurers should treat all customers fairly and insurance companies are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) rules. The FCA is an independent body responsible for regulating and supervising the financial services industry. The FCA monitors firms to make sure they provide products that are fair value, and, where necessary, it will take action.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the new Early Release Scheme on the families of those released.
The Government was forced to introduce SDS40 to avoid the collapse of the criminal justice system. At the point when SDS40 came into effect on 10 September, the use of End of Custody Supervised Licence came to an end. In designing the SDS40 measure, we took every possible step to communicate with victims about the change and the impact it could have. We also put in measures to mitigate risk including an 8-week implementation period, clear offence exclusions, and a huge amount of collaboration with partners across the Criminal Justice System.We considered the impact of SDS40 on the families of those released in our Impact Assessment highlighting how it may help resettlement and rehabilitation of eligible offenders, as earlier release into the community will mean they will be able to support themselves and their families earlier in their sentence.
Whether his Department has made a comparative assessment of the potential environmental impact of (a) importing coal from abroad for domestic consumption and (b) mining coal in the UK.
In line with our net zero target, we committed to phasing out unabated coal-fired power generation by 1st October 2024, a year earlier than the original 2025 target, and on September 30th Great Britain’s last coal fired electricity power plant, Ratcliffe-upon-Soar, closed. This means we have reduced coal’s share of our electricity supply from around a third, to zero in the space of only ten years. Most imported coal is used by industry, including steel making, cement and chemical industries, and patent fuel manufacture. Coal production and import information can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66a7a172a3c2a28abb50d8be/DUKES_2024_Chapter_2.pdf
Pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2024 to Question 7568 on Civil Service: Productivity, what metrics his Department uses to assess productivity in the (a) Civil Service and (b) wider public sector.
Over the coming months the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury will continue to work with departments to improve productivity and efficiency both in the public sector and in the Civil Service. More detail on this work will be provided at the next multi-year Spending Review, due to conclude in Spring 2025. The Government is also developing a strategic plan for a more efficient and effective civil service, including bold options to improve skills, harness digital technology and drive better outcomes for public services. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes quarterly and annual estimates for public service productivity. To further improve this world leading measure the ONS is undertaking a review of public service productivity, partnering with government departments, academics and expert users to help develop and improve methodology and data sources.
Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to prepare the BBC for its charter review.
The next Charter Review has to ensure the BBC doesn’t just survive but thrives for decades to come.My Department is in the early stages of preparation for the upcoming Charter Review, which we expect to launch in 2025. My Department is already in discussions with the BBC about Charter Review.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he will make an assessment of the potential merits of granting protected food status to traditional pie and mash.
Defra officials have already discussed the application process for Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) status with a representative of the producers. They are clear that an application for TSG status requires agreement on the recipe that producers would need to follow to use the name in future. They also understand that all those wishing to use the name would need periodic verification of their practices. Once a formal application is submitted a full assessment of the case can be made.
What information her Department holds on the number and proportion of buses operating in London that were made in the UK.
The Department does not hold information on the number or proportion of buses operating in London that were made in the UK.
Whether she has made an recent assessment of the potential merits of extending the plug-in grant for vans.
The plug-in van grant has been in place since 2012 to help reduce up-front purchase costs, supporting almost 90,000 zero emission vans and heavy goods vehicles across the UK. Plug-in vehicle grants will continue for vans, trucks, motorcycles, taxis and wheelchair accessible vehicles until at least the end of the current financial year.
What discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on its purchase of new zero-emission buses from non-UK manufacturers.
None. This is a devolved matter and, as such, a decision for the Scottish Government.I have recently met UK bus manufacturers to understand how the UK Government can support the transport sector.
If she will publish advice for local transport authorities on best practice for on-street charging.
To support best practice in local charging infrastructure strategy and delivery, including on-street, the Government has funded local authority electric vehicle (EV) officers and a dedicated EV infrastructure training course. These officers receive expert advice and guidance through a central support body and can access extensive information via a regularly updated online EV knowledge repository. The Government will continue to publish further guidance for local authorities on EV charging as required.
How many police officers have left each police force since 4 July 2024.
The Home Office collects and publishes data on the number of police officers who leave the service in England and Wales, broken down by Police Force Area (PFA), on an annual basis in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales.The latest information covers the period to 31 March 2024. Data from 4 July 2024 are not held centrally. The ‘Leavers Open Data Table’ that accompanies the main statistical release contains information on the number of police officers that left the police service, in each financial year, from the year ending March 2007 to March 2024, is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/669a917cce1fd0da7b59294f/open-data-table-police-workforce-leavers-240724.odsData for the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 is due for publication in Summer 2025.
What steps he is taking to (a) monitor and (b) increase productivity in the civil service.
This Government is committed to improving the productivity of the public sector to deliver high quality public services, achieve value for money and support economic growth. The Government will develop a strategic plan for a more efficient and effective civil service, including bold options to improve skills, harness digital technology and drive better outcomes for public services.
Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with Essex and Suffolk Water on levels of investment in local water infrastructure.
Since taking office, the Secretary of State and I have met with representatives from all water and wastewater companies. Officials also regularly meet with water companies to discuss localised and regional issues. On 11 July, Ofwat proposed allowing a spending package of £88bn by water companies between 2025 - 2030. This investment will deliver upgrades across England and Wales to improve local water infrastructure including: 1500 wastewater treatment works, improvements of thousands of storm overflows and investment in improving bathing waters. For PR24, Essex and Suffolk Water are proposing to invest £1.5 billion in total in the region, notably £386 million on new water supplies and £17.5 million on leakage. This is the largest investment programme in the last 30 years, working to increase resilience and secure water supply for the future, reducing the impact on the environment.
Innovation and Technology, what discussions his has had with Openreach on plans for full-fibre broadband rollout (a) nationally and (b) in Essex; and whether there has been any change in the speed of the rollout plans since 4 July 2024.
OpenReach has announced commercial plans to deliver full-fibre broadband to 25 million premises in the UK by 2026 and 30 million by 2030.As part of Project Gigabit, Building Digital UK has signed a framework agreement with Openreach, with a value of up to £800 million, to provide around 312,000 hard-to-reach premises with access to gigabit-capable broadband.Essex has been included within a call-off under this framework, which we plan to award in the coming months with delivery to commence in late-2025. According to the independent website ThinkBroadband.com, over 82% of premises in Essex have access to gigabit-capable connection, including 64% with full-fibre.
Whether pay rises for (a) doctors and (b) other NHS staff will be met from existing NHS budgets.
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s statement on 29 July 2024 sets out the position across the Government, which includes departments making savings to pay towards the outcomes of the pay review bodies. The process for agreeing savings is not yet complete, however the intention is for the Department of Health and Social Care and HM Treasury to meet the pay review bodies’ recommendations for doctors and other National Health Service staff in 2024/25, and to resolve any funding needs in the usual way.
How many and what proportion of pensioner households have at least one (a) higher rate and (b) additional rate taxpayer.
The number of individuals over the state pension age paying higher and additional rate Income Tax in 2021 to 2022 is estimated as 455,000 and 39,300 respectively. These estimates account for the whole of the UK and are based on the 2021 to 2022 Survey of Personal Incomes, which is the latest outturn year available. HMRC does not hold household level data.
How many people were deported from the UK between November 1990 and May 1997.
Home Office statistics relating to deportation action are available through the National Archives, in the ‘Control of Immigration: Statistics’ biannual publications.