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1124064

	registered interest
	date	30/04/2019
	answering body	Women and Equalities
	answering dept id	31
	answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
	answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
	hansard heading	Civil Partnerships: Heterosexuality
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government when the legislation implementing civil partnerships for opposite sex couples will come into effect.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL15446
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/05/2019 answer text <p>The Civil Partnerships, Marriage and Deaths (Registration etc.) Act 2019 requires the Government to make regulations that extend eligibility to form a civil partnership to opposite-sex couples by no later than 31<sup> </sup>December 2019. The Government is working hard to ensure regulations are in place as place as soon as possible.</p> answering member printed Baroness Williams of Trafford question first answered 15/05/2019 16:18:14 answering member 4311 label Biography information for Baroness Williams of Trafford
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1233152

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2020
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	NatWest: Closures
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of NatWest bank's closure, without explanation, of the accounts of (1) small business customers after their approval for loans under the Bounce Back Loan Scheme, and (2) the members of the Facebook group ‘NatWest closed down my account'.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL8000
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/09/2020 answer text <p>The Government believes that any dispute arising between banks and their customers is usually best resolved by the parties involved. If a customer wishes to pursue a complaint, their first recourse is through the bank's official customer complaints procedure. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) requires banks to properly investigate all complaints and, through ongoing supervision, it continues to monitor the banks' complaint handling processes.</p><p> </p><p>If a customer is not satisfied with their bank's response to their complaint, then they may wish to consider an approach to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The FOS provides a free, independent dispute resolution service for bank customers, including eligible small businesses.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton question first answered 23/09/2020 13:00:09 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1404715

	registered interest
	date	19/01/2022
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Wealth: Taxation
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the letter from 102 millionaires and billionaires to attendees to the World Economic Forum in Davos, calling for the introduction of wealth taxes.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL5569
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 31/01/2022 answer text <p>The Government has noted the open letter and the suggestion of an annual wealth tax.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is committed to a fair tax system in which those with the most contribute the most. For example, the UK’s progressive Income Tax system means the top 1 per cent of Income Taxpayers are projected to pay 28 per cent of all Income Tax, and the top 5 per cent are projected to pay 49 per cent in the year 2021-22.</p><p>The UK does not have a single wealth tax, but it does have several taxes on assets and wealth. The UK already taxes assets and wealth across many different economic activities, including the acquisition, holding, transfer and disposal of assets, and income derived from assets.</p><p> </p><p>Notably, in 2020 the Wealth Tax Commission, which has no connection or link to the Government, found that if considering Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Stamp Duty, and Stamp Duty Land Tax, the UK is among the top of the G7 countries for wealth taxes as a percentage of total wealth.</p><p> </p><p>The Wealth Tax Commission also concluded that an annual wealth tax, reportedly suggested by the UK branch of the group behind the letter, would not be effective because of high administrative costs relative to revenue and ease of avoidance. It is also clear that the Wealth Tax Commission’s suggestion of a potential one-off wealth tax in the UK would be a complex undertaking and the amount of revenue raised would be highly dependent on the final design of the tax.</p><p>It is also the case that any individual or private business wishing to make a greater contribution to the Exchequer can make voluntary payments to HM Government. More information about how to do so is available on GOV.UK.</p> answering member printed Viscount Younger of Leckie question first answered 31/01/2022 17:19:34 answering member 4169 label Biography information for Viscount Younger of Leckie
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1646561

	registered interest
	date	21/06/2023
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Bank Services: Disadvantaged
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government how they monitor whether banks are complying with their legal duty to enable citizens without a fixed address to access a basic bank account; and what are the results of this monitoring.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL8707
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2023 answer text <p>The designated providers of basic bank accounts have agreed to report data on basic bank accounts and personal current accounts to HM Treasury for annual publication. These reports are available on the GOV.UK website.<sup><sup>[1]</sup></sup></p><p> </p><p> </p><p><sup><sup>[1]</sup></sup> https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/basic-bank-accounts</p> answering member printed Baroness Penn question first answered 03/07/2023 11:58:55 answering member 4726 label Biography information for Baroness Penn
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1137103

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Marriage: Humanism
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will grant legal recognition to humanist marriages; and if not, what are the reasons for not doing so.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL16967
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2019 answer text <p>The Law Commission review that the Government announced last month is a fundamental review of the law on how and where people can legally marry in England and Wales. As part of that review, we have invited the Law Commission to make recommendations about how marriage by humanist and other non-religious belief organisations could be incorporated into a revised or new scheme for all marriages that is simple, fair and consistent. The Government will decide on provision on the basis of the Law Commission’s recommendations.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 10/07/2019 16:39:53 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1202114

	registered interest
	date	09/06/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Legal Aid Scheme: Coronavirus
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the risk of the restrictions in place to address the COVID-19 pandemic leading to a significant loss of income for legal aid firms, what assessment they have made of the impact of the Legal Aid Agency’s practice of (1) permitting only two claims a year for ongoing cases, and (2) only paying 75 per cent of such claims.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL5500
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2020 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice recently held a consultation on increasing the limits associated with claims for payment on account. This consultation closed on 16 June 2020.</p><p>Following this, the limit will be increased, allowing four such requests to be made in a twelve month period. This will be implemented once the necessary updates to infrastructure are completed, and the impact of this change will be kept under review.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 23/06/2020 16:40:53 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1202115

	registered interest
	date	09/06/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Legal Aid Scheme: Coronavirus
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on legal aid firms of (1) the stay on possession proceedings for tenants until the end of August, and (2) any subsequent substantial loss of income; and what steps they are taking to ensure that such firms are paid for their work in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Procurement Policy Note 02/20: Supplier relief due to COVID-19, published on 20 March.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL5501
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2020 answer text <p>MoJ is continuing to work closely with the Legal Aid Agency and HMCTS to assess the impact of Covid-19 on legal aid provision, and to support practitioners to work remotely when possible.</p><p>The Government have taken measures to support the sector include paying for virtual hearings in the same way as in-person hearings, halting pursuit of outstanding debts, relaxing some evidence requirements, and encouraging legal practitioners to use existing avenues of financial help, such as the ability to apply for early payment for work already done on a case. These measures will help Legal Aid providers adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.</p><p>PN 02/20, which has been updated in PPN 04/20, requires contracting authorities to determine whether a supplier is ‘at risk’. In making that determination, an authority will need to consider what steps have been taken by a public-sector provider to access other available support, because providers have no automatic entitlement to relief payments under the PPN and should not use them to supplement or duplicate the wider support measures that have been made available to UK businesses.</p><p>Data on legal aid expenditure on areas such as housing possession is released quarterly by the Legal Aid Agency, with the next release scheduled for September.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 23/06/2020 17:00:37 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1220866

	registered interest
	date	06/07/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Criminal Proceedings: Travellers
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in rectifying the absence of Gypsies, Roma and Travellers from official monitoring systems across the criminal justice system since the publication of the Lammy Review.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL6545
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/07/2020 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice is committed to improving collection and publication of data to identify and tackle any disparities in the Criminal Justice System.</p><p>In England and Wales, there are 18 ethnic groups recommended for use by government when asking for someone’s ethnicity. It is recognised that these ethnic groups do not represent how all people identify. People are encouraged to write in their ethnicity using their own words if they do not identify with any groups in the list.</p><p>Criminal justice organisations of England and Wales have adopted a revised Self-Defined 18+1 data standard to deliver greater precision when recording the defendant’s ethnicity status. This 18+1 standard added the option of “Gypsy or Irish Traveller”, however it does not include “Roma” and relies on self-identification by a defendant, who may choose to withhold this information.</p><p>Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) integrated the capability to collect data using the 18+1 standard into its systems from June 2018.</p><p>The Youth Justice Board (YJB) have also now extended the ethnic categorisation within the Youth Offending Team Case Management System to the 18+1 standard, meaning that “Gypsy or Irish Traveller” is now recorded as a separate ethnic group in addition to the other 18 ethnic groups recorded. This will enable the YJB to explore and better understand the experience throughout the Youth Justice System for GRT individuals and identify areas for potential work.</p><p>W3 (White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller) ethnicity has been available in nDelius, the probation service’s case management system, since its inception in 2013 following the “Gypsy or Irish Traveller” ethnicity option being included in the 2011 Census.</p><p>The Ministry of Justice has produced guidance for all criminal justice staff on working with GRT communities. This covers the importance of recording ethnicity and how to overcome the issues of low recording.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 14/07/2020 11:29:25 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1226205

	registered interest
	date	20/07/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Marriage
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government in which circumstances marriages in England and Wales are legally recognised by virtue of (1) the building in which the marriage takes place, (2) the registrar or officiant conducting the ceremony, and (3) the religion of the marriage.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL7035
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/08/2020 answer text <p>In general terms, the law requires couples to give due notice of the marriage and to marry in the place specified when they gave notice and in the presence of certain people. Marriages are not automatically valid because they involve a certain building, person or religion: on the contrary, they are capable of legal recognition because they follow a route set out in statute. The statute law also sets out circumstances in which a marriage will be void.</p><p>As part of its review of the law on how and where couples may marry in England and Wales, the Law Commission will make recommendations regarding what the consequences of failing to comply with all or some of the requirements for a valid marriage should be. The Government looks forward to publication of its consultation paper in September.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 04/08/2020 09:31:24 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker

1226206

	registered interest
	date	20/07/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Criminal Proceedings: Ethnic Groups
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Lord Keen of Elie on 15 July (HL Deb, cols 1659–61), how the situation of Black and other minority ethnic defendants, including those from Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities, will be taken into account in (1) the membership, and (2) the terms of reference, of the Royal Commission on criminal justice.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Whitaker
	uin	HL7036
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/08/2020 answer text <p>The Government is committed to a justice system that is fair, open and accessible to all.</p><p>In defining the terms of reference and membership of the Royal Commission, we are taking into account the need for the Commission to understand effectively the experiences of all those that engage with the criminal justice system. This will of course need to include taking account issues of race and the experiences of Black and other minority ethnic people, including those from Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities.</p><p>Further details will be announced in due course.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 04/08/2020 09:32:15 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	2510 label Biography information for Baroness Whitaker