Written questions by Anderson.

Pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 54350 on Cash Dispensing: Ashfield, how she defines the reasonable provision of free cash withdrawal and deposit facilities for personal current accounts.

As the regulator responsible for the access to cash regime, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) defines reasonable provision on a geographic basis, whilst having regard to the cash access policy statement set out by HMT. The FCA’s rules set out that 95% of people in urban areas should be within 1 mile of a cash access point and 95% of people in rural areas should be within 3 miles of a cash access point. However, the FCA also notes that assessments should take into account local factors when considering whether there is a deficiency of cash services in a local community. Where a resident, community organisation or other interested party feels access to cash in their community is insufficient, they can submit a request for a cash access assessment. Further information about submitting a cash access request can be found on LINK’s website. In circumstances where LINK considers that a community requires additional cash services, the financial services sector will provide a suitable shared solution, such as an ATM, cash deposit service, or shared Banking Hub, for cash users in that community. To ensure the reasonable provision of cash and banking services, the Government is working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK, which will provide individuals up and down the country with critical cash and banking services. The UK banking sector has committed to deliver these hubs by the end of this Parliament. Over 225 hubs have been announced so far, and over 150 are already open.

Pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 54343 on Tobacco: Smuggling, how many and what proportion of those referrals resulted in the revocation of the business's economic operator registration.

The majority of referrals received so far have been in respect of businesses who do not hold an economic operator registration because they do not sell, or intend to sell, any legitimate tobacco products. Under The Tobacco Products (Traceability and Security Features) Regulations 2019, a valid Economic Operator ID (EOID) holder who breaches the requirements on a second or subsequent occasion, may have their EOID registration revoked for either 6 months or 5 years. No referrals have met this criterion so far.

Pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 54343 on Tobacco: Smuggling, how many and what proportion of those referrals resulted in a penalty; and what the average penalty was.

Of the 312 referrals received by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) from local authority Trading Standards, 87 have so far progressed through casework to the issuing of a financial penalty for breaches of the Tobacco Track and Trace requirements. The average penalty charge to date has been £6,005. The progression of the remaining, and future referrals are expected to result in additional penalty charges being issued.

What steps she is taking to ensure that people (a) in Ashfield constituency and (b) nationwide have access to face to face banking services.

The Government recognises the importance of face-to-face banking to communities, businesses and high streets in Ashfield and across the UK. This is why the Government is working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK. The UK banking sector has committed to deliver these hubs by the end of this Parliament. Over 220 hubs have been announced so far, and over 160 are already open. Banking hubs offer everyday counter services provided by Post Office staff, allowing people and businesses to withdraw and deposit cash, deposit cheques, pay bills and make balance enquiries. They also contain dedicated rooms where customers can see community bankers from their own bank to carry out wider banking services. Where a branch closure is announced or a community has submitted a cash access assessment request, LINK, the independent industry coordinating body responsible for making access to cash assessments, assesses a community’s access to cash needs, and will recommend appropriate solutions where it considers that a community requires additional cash services, such as a banking hub or deposit service. Alternative options to access everyday banking services can be via telephone banking, through digital means such as mobile or online banking, and via the Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows personal and business customers to withdraw and deposit cash, check their balance, pay bills and cash cheques at 11,500 Post Office branches across the UK.

How many referrals has HMRC received from local enforcement authorities in relation to the penalty regime introduced through the Tobacco Products (Traceability and Security Features) (Amendment) Regulations 2023.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has received 312 referrals from local enforcement authorities in relation to the penalty regime introduced through the Tobacco Products (Traceability and Security Features) (Amendment) Regulations 2023. These regulations extended powers to enable Trading Standards to tackle non-compliance with the UK’s Tobacco Track and Trace system, which regulates tobacco at all stages of the supply chain, from manufacture through to retail. Trading Standards can make referrals to HMRC on potential breaches of the law, for HMRC to impose penalties.

What steps she is taking to help ensure access to cash in Ashfield constituency.

The Government recognises that cash continues to be used by millions of people across the UK, including those in vulnerable groups, and is committed to protecting access to cash for individuals and businesses.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) assumed regulatory responsibility for access to cash in September 2024. Its rules require the reasonable provision of free cash withdrawal and deposit facilities for personal current accounts.  Data from LINK (the operator of the UK’s largest ATM network) identifies 66 ATMs in Ashfield, including 47 free-to-use ATMs. The UK’s largest banks and building societies are required to assess the impact of a closure or material alteration of a relevant cash withdrawal or deposit facility and put in place a new service if necessary. Assessments are undertaken by LINK, the industry designated coordinating body responsible for conducting cash access assessments. LINK take into account a number of factors including those unique to each location, such as the size and vulnerability of the population and whether it is reasonable for people to travel to nearby facilities, factoring in geographic barriers such as hills, rivers and major roads. Where a resident, community organisation or other interested party feels access to cash in their community is insufficient, they can submit a request for a cash access assessment. Further information about submitting a cash access request can be found on LINK’s website.The Government is also working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK by the end of this Parliament. These hubs will provide small businesses and individuals with critical cash and in-person banking services.  Over 225 banking hubs have been recommended to date and over 150 are already open.

How many (a) calls and (b) online submissions have been made to HMRC fraud hotline in relation to (i) illegal tobacco and (ii) illegal alcohol in each of the last five years.

The tables below show the number of contacts received by HMRC Fraud Reporting Gateway in relation to Alcohol and Tobacco: Alcohol: YearOnline SubmissionTelephone SubmissionTotal24/2531,7287,85739,58523/2427,4439,04536,48822/2330,6888,18438,87221/2221,10710,67431,78120/2127,2968,15235,448 Tobacco: YearOnline SubmissionTelephone SubmissionTotal24/257,6052,0949,69923/245,4161,8737,28922/235,6252,0607,68521/221,5582,4243,98220/211,9881,5353,523

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential cost to the public purse of abolishing the (a) High Income Child Benefit Charge and (b) reductions in the level of Personal Allowance for people earning over (i) £100,00 and (ii) £125,000.

The Government is committed to managing the public finances responsibly. The High Income Child Benefit Charge ensures that the Government supports the majority of families while keeping welfare expenditure sustainable.Data showing tax revenue raised by the High Income Child Benefit Charge in each financial year is published within Table 1 of HMRC’s Child Benefit statistics.For individuals with income above £100,000, the Personal Allowance is withdrawn gradually, with £1 of allowance lost for every £2 of income above the income limit of £100,000. This reduction continues until the Personal Allowance is completely withdrawn for those with incomes above £125,140.The total income tax liability for those earning above £100,000 is published online in Table 2.5 of HMRC’s income tax liabilities statistics. For the 2024-25 tax year, this is estimated at £145 billion, almost half of the estimated income tax revenue for this year.As with all aspects of the tax system, the Government keeps the withdrawal of the Personal Allowance and the High Income Child Benefit Charge under review and any decisions on future changes will be taken by the Chancellor in the context of the wider public finances.

What steps she is taking to encourage high net wealth individuals to remain in the UK.

The Government’s priority is improving the UK’s competitiveness internationally and securing economic growth. The non-dom reforms have been specifically designed to make the UK competitive with a modern, simple tax regime that is also fair. The reforms establish a tax regime for new residents, which is more attractive to new arrivals than the current rules.The Government published a Tax Information and Impact Note for this policy on 30 October. This can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tax-changes-for-non-uk-domiciled-individuals/reforming-the-taxation-of-non-uk-domiciled-individuals.There have always been relatively large flows of non-doms in and out of the UK every year. For example. in the latest HMRC statistics for tax year 2022/23, 8,000 non-doms left and 13,000 arrived.We anticipate that some non-doms ineligible for the new regime will exit the UK in response to the changes. Taking this migration response into account, the OBR expects the non-dom reforms to raise £33.8 billion over the next five years to help fund the public services and investment projects needed to drive growth.

If she will make it her policy not to implement a wealth tax on assets above a certain threshold in the Spring Statement 2025.

The UK does not have a standalone wealth tax, though there are several long-standing taxes on assets and wealth that generate substantial revenue for the government.In addition to collecting substantial revenue from existing taxes on wealth and assets, the UK also has a progressive income tax system. The Government is committed to making sure the wealthiest in our society pay their fair share of tax. That is why the Chancellor announced a series of reforms at Autumn Budget 2024 to help fix the public finances in as fair a way as possible.  These and other decisions announced at the Budget will help repair the public finances and fund public services such as the NHS and education.

If she will make it her policy not to increase employee National Insurance contributions in the Spring Statement 2025.

The OBR’s spring forecast will take place on 26th March and be accompanied by a statement to Parliament from the Chancellor.Ahead of the statement responding to the forecast, the Government will not give a running commentary on economic developments.The Government is committed to not increasing the basic, higher or additional rates of Income Tax, Employee National Insurance contributions or VAT.

If she will make an estimate of the potential reduction in tax revenues from non-UK domiciled individuals leaving the UK.

The Government’s priority is improving the UK’s competitiveness internationally and securing economic growth. The non-dom reforms have been specifically designed to make the UK competitive with a modern, simple tax regime that is also fair. The reforms establish a tax regime for new residents, which is more attractive to new arrivals than the current rules.The Government published a Tax Information and Impact Note for this policy on 30 October. This can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tax-changes-for-non-uk-domiciled-individuals/reforming-the-taxation-of-non-uk-domiciled-individuals.There have always been relatively large flows of non-doms in and out of the UK every year. For example. in the latest HMRC statistics for tax year 2022/23, 8,000 non-doms left and 13,000 arrived.We anticipate that some non-doms ineligible for the new regime will exit the UK in response to the changes. Taking this migration response into account, the OBR expects the non-dom reforms to raise £33.8 billion over the next five years to help fund the public services and investment projects needed to drive growth.

If she will make it her policy not to (a) lower inheritance tax thresholds and (b) increase inheritance tax rates in the Spring Statement 2025.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has been commissioned for an Economic and Fiscal Forecast, which will be published on 26 March 2025. This is in line with the Budget Responsibility and National Audit Act 2011 which requires the OBR to produce two forecasts each financial year. This will be accompanied by a statement to Parliament from the Chancellor of the Exchequer.The Government set out its plans for inheritance tax at Autumn Budget 2024, including fixing the nil-rate band and residence nil-rate band at their current levels for a further two years in 2028-29 and 2029-30.The Government remains committed to one major fiscal event a year to give families and businesses stability and certainty on upcoming tax and spending changes and, in turn, to support the Government’s growth mission.

If she will publish detailed impact assessments for future tax increases.

As it does with all tax policy changes, the government has published Tax Information and Impact Notes for the tax policy changes announced at Budget, which give a clear explanation of the policy objective together with details of the tax impact on the Exchequer, the economy, individuals, businesses, civil society organisations and any equality or other specific area of impact.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing changes to the Agricultural Property Relief threshold.

The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and fixing the public finances in a fair way. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to agricultural property relief on (a) the UK’s food security and (b) trends in the numbers of farms in the next five years.

The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and fixing the public finances in a fair way. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992. The reforms are expected to result in up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those also claiming business property relief, in 2026-27 paying more inheritance tax. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, will not pay any more tax as a result of the changes in 2026-27, based on the latest available data. Where inheritance tax is due, those liable for a charge can in most circumstances pay any liability on the relevant assets over 10 annual instalments, interest-free. The Government’s commitment to farmers and the vital role they play in feeding our nation remains steadfast. Food security is national security. That is why, despite the fiscal constraints, we have prioritised £5 billion for the farming budget over the next two years. This includes the largest ever amount of funding directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history, and £60m to support farmers with the impacts of extreme wet weather. At the Oxford Farming Conference in January 2025, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs set out the Government’s long-term vision to make farming more profitable and put more money in the pockets of British farmers. This includes a set of reforms such as using the Government’s purchasing power to buy British Food, planning reforms to speed up the delivery of farm buildings and other infrastructure which supports food production, and work to ensure supply chain fairness.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of reducing (a) beer duty and (b) other alcohol duties for pubs.

Pubs make an enormous contribution to our economy and society, and this is recognised in the tax system. Draught Relief provides a duty discount for all draught products below 8.5 per cent alcohol by volume (ABV). Around 60% of alcoholic drinks served in pubs are covered by this relief. At the Autumn Budget, the Chancellor increased this relief from 9.2% to 13.9%. This represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and is equivalent to a 1p duty reduction on a typical pint.

If she will extend the 75% business rates relief for retail, hospitality, and leisure businesses after 2025.

To deliver our manifesto pledge, we intend to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, including those on the high street, from 2026-27. Ahead of these changes being made, the Government recognises that businesses will need support in 2025-26. As such, we have prevented the current RHL relief from ending in April 2025, extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business, and we have frozen the small business multiplier.

What steps her Department is taking to prevent money laundering by foreign nationals.

The Government is committed to tackling illicit finance and economic crime. We have appointed an Anti-Corruption Champion Baroness Hodge to support the government's agenda in tackling corruption at home and overseas.HM Treasury has been working with partners across the public and private sector to update our National Risk Assessment for money laundering and terrorist financing and to deliver Economic Crime Plan 2, the government’s public-private strategy to combat economic crime and strengthen the UK system. This includes work on HM Treasury-owned actions to reform our Anti-Money Laundering/Counter Terrorist Financing supervisory regime, and to improve the effectiveness of the Money Laundering Regulations.HM Treasury is responsible for the UK’s money laundering regulations which require that banks and other financial services companies apply enhanced customer due diligence and enhanced ongoing monitoring in any business relationships with a person established in high-risk jurisdictions as determined by the Financial Action Task Force or in relation to any relevant transaction where either of the parties to the transaction is established in a high-risk jurisdiction.HM Treasury is also supporting the development of a new Anti-Corruption Strategy to be published in 2025 which will include measures that address the UK’s vulnerabilities to corruption and money laundering.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential financial impact of VAT on private swimming schools.

VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption, and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. Tax breaks reduce the revenue available for public services, and must represent value for money for the taxpayer. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government took a number of difficult but necessary decisions on tax, welfare, and spending to fix the public finances, fund public services, and restore economic stability. This stability is critical to boosting investment and growth, and to making people across the UK better off. One of the key considerations for any potential new VAT relief is whether the cost saving is likely to be passed on to consumers. Evidence suggests that businesses only partially pass on any savings from lower VAT rates.