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391267

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Ulster Bank
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of what assets, if any, have been sold by Ulster Bank Ltd to Cerberus Capital Management since 2013; and what assessment they have made of the impact of such sales on their three objectives for their shareholding in Royal Bank of Scotland.
tabling member printed	Lord Empey
uin	HL1634
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/07/2015 answer text <p>The Chancellor has previously set out his objectives for the banks in state ownership, including Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). The government wants to maximise the ability of these important banks to support the British economy; get the best value for money for the taxpayer; and return them to private ownership.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Following a strategic review in 2013, the RBS Group committed to accelerating its return to private ownership by improving the performance of its ‘core’ bank. This included the creation of an internal ‘bad bank’ to house underperforming and high-risk assets, and a commitment to removing them from its balance sheet quickly.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The RBS Group announced in December 2014 that it had sold a £1.1 billion portfolio of real estate loans from its internal ‘bad bank’ to Cerberus Capital Management, reflecting the improved economic outlook of investors for the economy in Northern Ireland.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Government’s shareholding in RBS is managed at arm's length from HM Treasury by UK Financial Investments (UKFI). As an engaged shareholder, UKFI works closely with the banks’ management to assure itself of the banks’ approach to strategy. However, UKFI’s role is to manage the investment, not to manage the bank. Commercial decisions and assessments, including those relating to the sale of assets, remain a matter for the bank’s independent management team.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord O'Neill of Gatley question first answered 27/07/2015 13:50:45 answering member 4536 label Biography information for Lord O'Neill of Gatley
tabling member	4216 label Biography information for Lord Empey

391290

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Self-employed
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of self-employed people to achieving the objectives set out in his Department's document, Fixing the Foundations: Creating a more prosperous nation, published in July 2015.
tabling member constituency	Hove
tabling member printed	Peter Kyle
uin	7913
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2015 answer text <p>Self-employment makes a vital contribution to the economy, with over 4.5 million people currently self-employed, accounting for 14.5% of total employment.</p><p> </p><p>The government wants to raise productivity across all sectors and believes that self-employment can make an important contribution to achieving the objectives set out in Fixing the foundations.</p><p> </p><p>The government has asked Julie Deane OBE to carry out an independent review, reporting in early 2016, of the contribution the self-employed make to the UK economy and consider how they can be better supported.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Hertfordshire answering member printed Mr David Gauke question first answered 07/09/2015 15:22:09 answering member 1529 label Biography information for Mr David Gauke
tabling member	4505 label Biography information for Peter Kyle

391293

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Economic and Monetary Union: Greece
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential effect of a Greek exit from the euro on the United Kingdom economy; and what contingency plans have been made for that eventuality.
tabling member printed	The Marquess of Lothian
uin	HL1651
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/07/2015 answer text <p>As the Chancellor has said, we should not underestimate the impact that a Greek exit from the euro area would have on the European economy – or the knock-on effects on the UK. But the economic plan we have pursued in Britain these last five years has increased our resilience – and we will take whatever further steps are needed to protect the UK from new risks to our economic security. The Treasury continuously monitors global economic developments, including those in Greece, and their impact on the UK as part of the normal process of policy development.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The UK government stands ready to do whatever is necessary to protect and secure the British economy and financial system, and support businesses and individuals. As you would expect, these contingency plans take into account a wide range of scenarios.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord O'Neill of Gatley question first answered 27/07/2015 13:42:59 answering member 4536 label Biography information for Lord O'Neill of Gatley
tabling member	259 label Biography information for The Marquess of Lothian

391294

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Pensions: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people in Scotland have made use of the new pension flexibilities introduced on 6 April 2015.
tabling member constituency	Edinburgh South
tabling member printed	Ian Murray
uin	7915
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2015 answer text <p>The July Budget document revealed that over 85,000 individuals had taken advantage of the new flexibilities for accessing pensions that were introduced in April 2015. Reliable data for Scotland is not available.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>HMRC plans to publish statistics on take up of pensions flexibility in the Autumn</p><p> </p> answering member constituency West Worcestershire answering member printed Harriett Baldwin question first answered 09/09/2015 13:07:12 answering member 4107 label Biography information for Dame Harriett Baldwin
tabling member	3966 label Biography information for Ian Murray

391296

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Pensions: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people in Scotland have received guidance from the Pension Wise guidance service (a) face-to-face, (b) by telephone and (c) online.
tabling member constituency	Edinburgh South
tabling member printed	Ian Murray
uin	7916
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2015 answer text <p>The pension freedoms introduced on 6 April mean that the 320,000 individuals retiring each year with defined contribution pension savings are able to access them as they wish, and around 2 million people aged over 55 now have more options when they retire. Data for the proportion of people who have used the freedoms following a Pension Wise appointment is not collected.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>As announced on 21 July, nearly 18,000 free Pension Wise guidance appointments over the phone and face to face are being delivered and more than 925,000 people have used the Pension Wise website, with many people returning to the site regularly.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency West Worcestershire answering member printed Harriett Baldwin grouped question UIN 7917 question first answered 09/09/2015 13:12:31 answering member 4107 label Biography information for Dame Harriett Baldwin
tabling member	3966 label Biography information for Ian Murray

391297

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Government Departments: Telephone Services
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord O’Neill of Gatley on 9 July (HL898), what training in communication skills is provided for the officials in (1) HM Revenue and Customs, (2) the Home Office, (3) the Ministry of Justice, (4) the Department for Work and Pensions, and (5) the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, who are responsible for helping members of the public who telephone with complaints or requests for information.
tabling member printed	Lord Quirk
uin	HL1653
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2015 answer text <p>All new HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) telephony advisers receive two days of call handling soft skills training, prior to handling customer calls. Further call handling training is provided depending on the needs of the advisor.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The first escalation for complaints from an adviser is to a Team Leader. 80 per cent of complaints are successfully handled at this point.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>HMRC’s Personal Tax Operations has a specific team who deal with customer complaints received via telephone.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>HMRC has a target of answering 80 per cent of all calls received.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Information regarding the training and performance on telephony issues for other Government Departments is not held centrally and should be obtained from the Departments concerned.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord O'Neill of Gatley grouped question UIN HL1654 question first answered 30/07/2015 13:33:52 answering member 4536 label Biography information for Lord O'Neill of Gatley
tabling member	3254 label Biography information for Lord Quirk

391298

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Government Departments: Telephone Services
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord O’Neill of Gatley on 9 July (HL898), whether there are target times by which calls from members of the public are expected to receive attention when telephoning (1) HM Revenue and Customs, (2) the Home Office, (3) the Ministry of Justice, (4) the Department for Work and Pensions, and (5) the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
tabling member printed	Lord Quirk
uin	HL1654
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2015 answer text <p>All new HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) telephony advisers receive two days of call handling soft skills training, prior to handling customer calls. Further call handling training is provided depending on the needs of the advisor.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The first escalation for complaints from an adviser is to a Team Leader. 80 per cent of complaints are successfully handled at this point.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>HMRC’s Personal Tax Operations has a specific team who deal with customer complaints received via telephone.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>HMRC has a target of answering 80 per cent of all calls received.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Information regarding the training and performance on telephony issues for other Government Departments is not held centrally and should be obtained from the Departments concerned.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord O'Neill of Gatley grouped question UIN HL1653 question first answered 30/07/2015 13:33:52 answering member 4536 label Biography information for Lord O'Neill of Gatley
tabling member	3254 label Biography information for Lord Quirk

391299

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Pensions: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people in Scotland who have made use of the pension flexibilities introduced on 6 April 2015 received guidance from the Pension Wise guidance service (a) by telephone, (b) face-to-face and (c) online.
tabling member constituency	Edinburgh South
tabling member printed	Ian Murray
uin	7917
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2015 answer text <p>The pension freedoms introduced on 6 April mean that the 320,000 individuals retiring each year with defined contribution pension savings are able to access them as they wish, and around 2 million people aged over 55 now have more options when they retire. Data for the proportion of people who have used the freedoms following a Pension Wise appointment is not collected.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>As announced on 21 July, nearly 18,000 free Pension Wise guidance appointments over the phone and face to face are being delivered and more than 925,000 people have used the Pension Wise website, with many people returning to the site regularly.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency West Worcestershire answering member printed Harriett Baldwin grouped question UIN 7916 question first answered 09/09/2015 13:12:31 answering member 4107 label Biography information for Dame Harriett Baldwin
tabling member	3966 label Biography information for Ian Murray

391301

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Childcare: Tax Allowances
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish his Department's research on the effect of his policies on tax-free childcare on the labour market.
tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
uin	7920
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/09/2015 answer text <p>Updated Information on the impacts of Tax-Free Childcare on the labour and childcare markets will be published in due course.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds grouped question UIN 8179 question first answered 11/09/2015 10:29:14 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

391303

registered interest
date	20/07/2015
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Food: Taxation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the taxation of high sugar and high salt food and drinks.
tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
uin	7965
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2015 answer text <p>At present the Government has no plans to introduce new taxes on food and drinks.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds question first answered 07/09/2015 15:04:20 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman