Written questions by Mierlo.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a proportional property tax as a replacement for (a) stamp duty and (b) council tax.

Council Tax and Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) are reliable and important sources of revenue for both the Exchequer and Local Authorities. They raise over £50 billion each year to help pay for essential public services. Any reforms to the property tax system would have to carefully consider impacts on the Exchequer and Local Government finances, as well as impacts on taxpayers. The Government has no plans to introduce a proportional property tax. The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the usual tax policy making process.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on employers’ ability to employ (a) part-time and (b) lower earning employees who were previously not counted in employer National Insurance contributions.

A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer; the economic impacts of the policy; and the impacts on individuals, businesses, civil society organisations and an overview of the equality impacts. The Office for Budget Responsibility also published the Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO), which sets out a detailed forecast of the economy and public finances. The Government is protecting the lowest paid by increasing the National Living Wage. This limits the ability of employers to pass on increases in costs to those on lower pay. The Government has also introduced important protections for workers as part of the Plan to Make Work Pay.

If she will take steps to ensure (a) part time and (b) lower earning employees that are exempt from employer National Insurance contributions remain so once the proposed changes to employer National Insurance have been implemented.

A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the exchequer; the economic impacts of the policy; and the impacts on individuals, businesses, civil society organisations and an overview of the equality impacts. The Office for Budget Responsibility also published the Economic and Fiscal Outlook (EFO), which sets out a detailed forecast of the economy and public finances. The Government is protecting the lowest paid by increasing the National Living Wage. This limits the ability of employers to pass on increases in costs to those on lower pay. The Government has also introduced important protections for workers as part of the Plan to Make Work Pay.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of taking legislative steps to provide VAT relief on the rethatching of listed buildings.

To preserve heritage, restorative work carried out on listed buildings previously benefited from a zero rate of VAT. However, this relief was abolished in 2012, as it was primarily used to carry out extension work unnecessary for heritage purposes. Withdrawing this relief simplified VAT rules and removed the scope for error when categorising construction work as either alteration or repair. VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. VAT is the UK’s second largest tax forecast to raise £171 billion in 2024/25. Taxation is a vital source of revenue that helps to fund vital public services. Evidence suggests that businesses only partially pass on any savings from lower VAT rates. In some cases, reliefs do not represent good value for money, as there is no guarantee that savings will be passed on to consumers. The Government therefore has no current plans to reduce the VAT charged on work to maintain and repair listed properties, but we keep all taxes under review.

If she will take steps to allow Hartley pension holders to transfer their pensions funds to other administrators.

The Government is actively monitoring the situation of Hartley Pensions and offers our sympathies to the affected customers. Hartley Pensions is a self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs) provider and is therefore the responsibility of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to regulate. The FCA are working with the administrators to ensure the affected customers achieve the best possible outcome and the Government is working with the FCA as part of this process. Unfortunately, the Government cannot comment on any issues relating to an ongoing administration or court case.

What steps she is taking to reduce (a) delays and (b) complexities in obtaining the necessary information to purchase additional years of National Insurance contributions to maximise their state pension (a) faced by women and (b) generally.

To support customers, HMRC and DWP enhanced the online Check your State Pension forecast service in April 2024. New functionality enables the majority of working age customers to self-serve by viewing their State Pension forecast, see payable gaps and make payments online. The Future Pensions Centre and the National Insurance helpline remain in place for customers who are unable to use the online service, as well as customers who prefer that route or who need additional assistance. Both departments are putting in place measures to manage the expected demand in the run-up to the 5 April 2025 deadline, including managing the deployment of resources, the use of callbacks, digitising and improving forms for overseas individuals, interactive voice response messaging and directing customers to the digital service.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed business property relief changes on small family businesses.

At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government took a number of difficult but necessary decisions on tax, welfare, and spending to restore economic stability, fix the public finances, and support public services. The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

What steps he is taking with HMRC to help ensure taxpayers receive prompt responses to queries.

HMRC recognise that their service levels have been below published standards, and they are committed to improving customer service performance.To improve their services and meet published standards, HMRC are deploying additional customer service advisers this year. They expect to meet their post and telephone service standards in the second half of 2024-25.HMRC are investing in digital services and the HMRC. These can often provide customers with faster resolutions for straightforward matters.

If she will make an assessment of the adequacy of VAT rules applying to (a) cakes, (b) confectionary and (c) food; and if she will take steps to increase levels of business understanding of VAT ratings for new products falling within those categories.

The Government’s policy on the VAT rules relating to a) cakes b) confectionary and c) food is well established and guidance is readily available on GOV.uk for businesses to consult when deciding on the VAT liability of a product. The Government keeps all taxes under review.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of agricultural property relief on the financial sustainability of farms.

The Government does not speculate on tax changes outside of fiscal events. Where changes are made, information about impacts is published in the usual way.

Whether she has made a recent assessment with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero of the potential merits of taking fiscal steps to help support the adoption of (a) heat batteries and (b) other energy saving technologies.

The Government recently announced a new Warm Homes: Local Grant and confirmed the continuation of the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund to support those with low incomes with energy performance upgrades and cleaner heating. Both support a range of energy saving technologies. Further details will be set out following the Spending Review. The installation of qualifying energy saving materials in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a relevant charitable purpose also benefit from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027, worth over £1 billion. The Government currently has no plans to add further technologies to this VAT relief but keeps all taxes under review.

If she will make an assessment with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero of the potential merits of (a) providing VAT relief for heat batteries and (b) taking other fiscal steps to help support the decarbonisation of homes.

This Government is committed to improving the quality and sustainability of our housing stock, through improvements such as low carbon heating, insulation, solar panels, and batteries. This will be vital to making the UK more energy resilient and meeting our 2050 Net Zero commitment. Our Warm Homes Plan will increase ambition in this area, working with the private sector to make progress and ensuring the energy efficiency of privately rented homes improves. The Government recently announced a new Warm Homes: Local Grant to help low-income homeowners and private tenants with energy performance upgrades and cleaner heating, and confirmed the continuation of the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund to support social housing providers and tenants. Further details of the Warm Homes Plan will be set out through the Spending Review.The installation of qualifying energy-saving materials in residential accommodation and buildings used solely for a relevant charitable purpose also benefits from a temporary VAT zero rate until March 2027. Last year, a Call for Evidence (CfE) seeking views on additional technologies to potentially include within this relief was run. Heat batteries were one of the technologies put forwards by respondents. As set out in the Government response to the CfE, at that time, the Government was unable to identify sufficient independent data regarding the efficiency of heat batteries, making it difficult to assess the technology’s energy-saving properties objectively. The Government currently has no plans to add further technologies to this VAT relief. Nevertheless, the Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process. Changes to the tax system are announced at fiscal events in the usual way.