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1302009

registered interest
date	11/03/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme: Directors
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his interview with Martin Lewis on 4 March 2021, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of limited company directors receiving furlough for PAYE income on the (a) ability of limited companies to (i) generate commercial revenue and (ii) retain or attract new customers and (b) future viability of limited companies; and what estimate his Department has made of the potential number of limited company directors receiving furlough for PAYE income who will be in business in 12 months’ time.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	167181
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2021 answer text <p>The purpose of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) is to protect jobs by easing the financial burden on businesses whose operations have been affected by COVID-19, and therefore reduce the risk of permanent business closures.</p><p> </p><p>Directors paying themselves a salary through a PAYE scheme have access to the CJRS on the same terms as other employees, if other eligibility criteria are met. Where furloughed directors need to carry out particular duties to fulfil their statutory obligations, they may do so provided it is no more than would reasonably be judged necessary for that purpose. In particular, they should not do work of a kind they would carry out in normal circumstances to generate commercial revenue or provide services to or on behalf of their company, as this is not in line with the scheme's objectives, which are to support businesses to cover employment costs, not lost revenue. This also applies to companies with a sole director. However, in order to support people to work where they can, and where it is permitted within the restrictions, the flexible element of the CJRS remains available. Businesses can use the scheme for employees for any amount of time and shift pattern.</p><p> </p><p>For clarity, dividends are not covered by the CJRS. Income from dividends is a return on investment in the company, rather than wages. Under current reporting mechanisms it is not possible for HM Revenue &amp; Customs (HMRC) to distinguish between dividends derived from an individual’s own company and dividends from other sources, and between dividends in lieu of employment income and as returns from other corporate activity.</p><p> </p><p>HMRC's official statistics do not determine the job role of furloughed employments. Therefore, it is not possible to estimate the number of furloughed directors who will be in their current posts in 12 months’ time.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 19/03/2021 11:45:05 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1301245

registered interest
date	10/03/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	DMB Solutions: VAT
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the HMRC liquidation claim for DMB solutions Ltd, HMRC reference 075 2142906 03, what steps have been taken to recover the £578,497.83 VAT element of HMRC’s claim from the company's directors personally; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	166375
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/03/2021 answer text <p>HMRC cannot release this information as it relates to an identifiable individual or organisation.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 18/03/2021 12:08:03 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1300867

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Self-employment Income Support Scheme
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons businesses eligible for the fifth self-employed grant announced in Budget 2021 will be eligible to claim the equivalent of 80 per cent of three months average trading profits capped at £7,500 when the grant period covers five months from May to September; and what plans he has to help meet lost income for the remaining two months.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	165488
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/03/2021 answer text <p>The Government announced at Budget 2021 that the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will continue until September, with a fourth and a final fifth grant. The fourth SEISS grant, available to claim from late April, will be worth 80% of average trading profits, paid out in a single instalment covering three months’ worth of annual profits, and capped at £7,500 in total. Further details of the fifth SEISS grant will be published in due course.</p><p> </p><p>Grants are now based on 2019-20  tax returns which is the most up to date information HMRC holds for self-employed individuals. This means that the Government is now in a position to provide support to hundreds of thousands of newly eligible self-employed individuals.</p><p>Using these returns requires time to deliver, due to the increased population and new data. Guidance on how to claim the fourth grant will be available in due course.</p><p> </p><p>The SEISS and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) are very different schemes. The CJRS pays for hours which are not worked, while SEISS claimants can work while claiming. Furthermore, as the Chancellor announced, employers will be required to contribute to CJRS payments as the economy reopens.  The SEISS is not intended to provide a month-by-month replacement of income. Due to the volatility of self-employed income and the lack of granular data that HMRC hold on self-employed trading profits, precise mapping of income replacement month by month is not possible. Instead, the SEISS provides a lump sum payment to support eligible self-employed individuals whose businesses have been affected by coronavirus.</p><p> </p><p>The SEISS is just one part of a wider package of support for the self-employed. The temporary £20 per week increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance has been extended for six months, and the suspension of the Minimum Income Floor for three months, to the end of July 2021, so that where self-employed claimants' earnings have fallen significantly, their Universal Credit award will have increased to reflect their lower earnings. In addition, they may also have access to other elements of the package, including Restart Grants, the Recovery Loan scheme, business rates relief, and other business support schemes.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman grouped question UIN 165489 question first answered 17/03/2021 13:42:45 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1300868

registered interest
date	09/03/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Self-employment Income Support Scheme
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to provide financial support for people potentially eligible for the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) prior to being able to make a claim to either the fourth or fifth SEISS grants; and for what reasons that scheme does not deliver parity with the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme with regard to the payment schedule.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	165489
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/03/2021 answer text <p>The Government announced at Budget 2021 that the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will continue until September, with a fourth and a final fifth grant. The fourth SEISS grant, available to claim from late April, will be worth 80% of average trading profits, paid out in a single instalment covering three months’ worth of annual profits, and capped at £7,500 in total. Further details of the fifth SEISS grant will be published in due course.</p><p> </p><p>Grants are now based on 2019-20  tax returns which is the most up to date information HMRC holds for self-employed individuals. This means that the Government is now in a position to provide support to hundreds of thousands of newly eligible self-employed individuals.</p><p>Using these returns requires time to deliver, due to the increased population and new data. Guidance on how to claim the fourth grant will be available in due course.</p><p> </p><p>The SEISS and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) are very different schemes. The CJRS pays for hours which are not worked, while SEISS claimants can work while claiming. Furthermore, as the Chancellor announced, employers will be required to contribute to CJRS payments as the economy reopens.  The SEISS is not intended to provide a month-by-month replacement of income. Due to the volatility of self-employed income and the lack of granular data that HMRC hold on self-employed trading profits, precise mapping of income replacement month by month is not possible. Instead, the SEISS provides a lump sum payment to support eligible self-employed individuals whose businesses have been affected by coronavirus.</p><p> </p><p>The SEISS is just one part of a wider package of support for the self-employed. The temporary £20 per week increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance has been extended for six months, and the suspension of the Minimum Income Floor for three months, to the end of July 2021, so that where self-employed claimants' earnings have fallen significantly, their Universal Credit award will have increased to reflect their lower earnings. In addition, they may also have access to other elements of the package, including Restart Grants, the Recovery Loan scheme, business rates relief, and other business support schemes.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman grouped question UIN 165488 question first answered 17/03/2021 13:42:45 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1290152

registered interest
date	25/02/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Directors: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has identified a method of income certification which would enable directors of micro limited companies to access support during the covid-19 crisis that accurately reflects previous income levels; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	158904
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/03/2021 answer text <p>The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) and Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) rely on verified HMRC data to identify and target support to those in need. The data that would enable the Government to design a scheme for company directors, including who is a working director and what part of their income it would be appropriate to support, has not historically been and is not collected by HMRC because it has not been needed to administer the tax system. Information held by other bodies such as Companies House also does not in itself provide the verifiable data to target support to those in need. The Government has engaged closely with representative groups in an effort to overcome these operational constraints.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 05/03/2021 14:48:00 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1290153

registered interest
date	25/02/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the criteria used to determine the circumstances in which (a) self-certification and (b) a statement from an accountant are considered a reliable means of certifying a business or an individual’s statement of income.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	158905
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/03/2021 answer text <p>The context for when and whether to use self-certification in a scheme design is important.</p><p> </p><p>In relation to Self-Assessment HMRC have built up systems and processes over many years that mitigate the risks of fraud and error in Self-Assessment returns. This information has been used to identify those eligible for the SEISS, and thus eligibility for the scheme is not based on self-certification. The same is true for the CJRS.</p><p> </p><p>Through the SEISS the Government has been able to support millions of self-employed people rapidly and effectively. The Government has based the populations eligible for CJRS and SEISS on data that it already holds and that can be quickly and easily verified at large scale.</p><p>Without these precautions, the support schemes would be at risk of delay, unmanageable operational overload through the need for manual processing, significant error and fraudulent attacks.</p><p> </p><p>More widely, it is appropriate that the tax system make some qualified use of self-certification. For example, under the SEISS, self-certification helps to target support within the population identified through Self-Assessment returns better; it is not used to determine eligibility in the first place.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 05/03/2021 14:15:58 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1287272

registered interest
date	19/02/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Directors: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the reasons for the differences in self-certification requirements for limited company directors for accessing (a) income support, (b) the self employed income support scheme, (c) submitting a tax return and (d) other aspects of the tax system.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	154945
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/03/2021 answer text <p>The tax system relies in part on self-certification through Self-Assessment as it is not possible to corroborate all information received from taxpayers. HMRC have various controls in place to mitigate the fraud risks associated with Self-Assessment. The risks associated with this depend on the type of scheme. For example, the risk is higher when HMRC are paying money out than when they are taking money in. Controls in place in the Self-Assessment system to mitigate fraud risk associated with self-certification have been built up and tested over many years and have proven to be very effective at preventing fraud.</p><p> </p><p>In relation to wider income support, self-employed Universal Credit (UC) claimants must report their earnings each month in order for their payment to be calculated and released to them. If a Work Coach suspects that a claimant is misreporting their earnings to inflate their award, they can refer the claim to be investigated for fraud.</p><p> </p><p>UC presents a different type of risk compared to COVID-19 support schemes. The Government has been clear that due to the generosity and speed of delivering the COVID-19 support schemes, they could be subject to opportunistic fraud and perhaps even criminal activity. On the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, its purpose is to support the incomes of people who have lost earnings due to the pandemic. The scheme relies on verified HMRC data to identify and target support to those in need. Unlike the SEISS grants that use information HMRC already hold, targeting additional support at limited company directors would require them to make a claim and submit information that HMRC could not manageably or consistently verify in order to ensure that payments were made to eligible companies and for eligible activity. Relying on self-certification to identify directors or determine income sources could open the scheme up to unacceptable levels of fraud and error.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 01/03/2021 17:07:10 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1287273

registered interest
date	19/02/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Directors: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of not requiring dividends to be taken into account when calculating levels of covid-19 income support for directors of small limited companies; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	154946
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/03/2021 answer text <p>Dividends are not covered by the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme or the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme. Income from dividends is a return on investment in the company, rather than wages. Under current reporting mechanisms it is not possible for HM Revenue &amp; Customs (HMRC) to distinguish between dividends derived from an individual’s own company and dividends from other sources, and between dividends in lieu of employment income and as returns from other corporate activity.</p><p> </p><p>The purpose of the CJRS and SEISS schemes is to support the incomes of people who have lost earnings due to the pandemic. These schemes have relied on verified HMRC data to identify and target support to those in need. Information that would enable HMRC to do the same for company directors is not collected by HMRC, because it is not needed for administering the tax system. Information held by other bodies such as Companies House cannot be used for this purpose as it is self-declared, unverified and does not provide data on income. Relying on self-certification to identify directors or determine income sources could open any scheme up to unacceptable levels of fraud and error.</p><p> </p><p>Those who pay themselves a salary through their own company’s PAYE scheme may be eligible for the CJRS. Directors may have access to the wide range of support provided by the Government since the start of the pandemic including loans, direct cash grants, and Universal Credit. More information about the full range of support measures is available on GOV.UK.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 01/03/2021 14:41:31 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1287464

registered interest
date	19/02/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Off-payroll Working: Research
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to HC Deb 19 May 2020, cc543, if he will publish the outcomes of the research into the long-term effects of the 2017 IR35 reform on the public sector; and what parameters of the monitoring and research will be undertaken on the effect of the IR35 changes due to take effect in the private and voluntary sectors from April 2021.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	154948
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/03/2021 answer text <p>The Government will publish two research reports on the long-term effects of the 2017 off-payroll (IR35) reform this spring. One will set out findings from education sector client organisations and the other, findings from employment agencies.</p><p> </p><p>The report into findings from client organisations will focus on the education sector only because the pressures created by the pandemic have meant that the research agency has not been able to contact a sufficient number of public health and other public sector organisations to produce robust findings ahead of April 2021.</p><p> </p><p>The Government intends to resume this research later in the spring, with a view to publishing full findings from all public sector organisations later this year.</p><p> </p><p>The Financial Secretary to the Treasury has recently written to the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee and the Treasury Select Committee, and HMRC have updated all MPs via their MP digest, on the status of this research.</p><p> </p><p>The Government intends to commission external research into the short-term effects of the 2021 reform on the private and voluntary sectors later this year. HMRC are currently scoping the parameters for this research and intend to publish the findings next year.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 01/03/2021 14:40:47 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1284151

registered interest
date	04/02/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Self-employment Income Support Scheme: Disclosure of Information
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of his decision not to release details of the fourth Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant covering February to April 2021 until the Budget on 3 March 2020 on the ability of eligible self-employed people to pay their personal and business bills and expenses in February 2021; and for what reason he did not make those details available at the same time as he announced the extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to April 2021.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	149191
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2021 answer text <p>The Government is committed to supporting the self-employed population during the COVID-19 pandemic through a substantial package of support.</p><p> </p><p>The three Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grants combined provided up to £21,570 of support for each individual, placing the SEISS among the most generous schemes for the self-employed in the world. As of 31 December, about 2.7 million individuals have made claims totalling over £18.9 billion so far across all three grants.</p><p> </p><p>The claims window for the third grant closed on 29 January 2021. The Government confirmed in January that further details of the fourth grant, which will cover February to the end of April, will be announced alongside other economic updates at Budget in March.</p><p> </p><p>The SEISS is just one element of a substantial package of support for the self-employed which includes Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support, mortgage holidays, self-isolation support payments and other business support grants.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 12/02/2021 14:36:30 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas