Matt Vickers MP: written questions 2025
655 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Disposable IncomeTreasuryTabled 15 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67993More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment she has made of the impact of inflation on household disposable income.
Answer: Real Household Disposable Income (RHDI) per person includes all sources of household income, net of taxes and inflation.In the year to Q1 2025 (2024/25) RHDI per capita was 2.9% higher than in the year prior (2023/24), the fastest pace of financial year g...
Answered 22 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordWater: StandardsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67517More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve water quality in (a) rivers and (b) coastal areas.
Answer: The levels of water pollution are unacceptable. That is why cleaning up our rivers, lakes and seas is a priority for the Government. We are taking action to address agricultural pollution and support farm businesses. We are, as a priority, working with fa...
Answered 22 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: Pollution ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67516More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle agricultural pollution in protected areas.
Answer: This Government is firmly committed to safeguarding every aspect of our natural environment, including through reducing agricultural pollution. This approach aims to protect all areas, including our most protected areas.
Answered 22 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordEnvironmental Land Management SchemesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67515More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support farmers transitioning to sustainable land management.
Answer: We are providing farmers and land managers with the support needed to help restore nature, which is vital to safeguard our long-term food security and build resilience to climate change. There are currently record numbers of farmers taking part in farming...
Answered 22 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordEnvironmental Land Management SchemesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67514More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many farms have applied for grants under the Environmental Land Management Scheme in the last 12 months.
Answer: The Rural Payments Agency published their Annual Report and Accounts for 2024-25 on 17 July 2025, which includes the most recent verifiable summary of Environmental Land Management scheme uptake. Following the success of the Sustainable Farming Incentive ...
Answered 23 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordFood: ProductionDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67513More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to (a) support and (b) increase domestic food production.
Answer: The Government’s commitment to farming and food security remains steadfast, which is why the Government is investing £2.7 billion a year into sustainable food production and nature’s recovery, with funding for our Environmental Land Management schemes inc...
Answered 22 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordFlood ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67512More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve flood defences in high-risk areas.
Answer: We inherited flood defences in their worst state on record – the condition of key flood defences in England was at the lowest it had been since the Financial Year 2009/10. Delivering on the Government’s Plan for Change, we’re investing a record £2.65 bill...
Answered 22 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordAffordable HousingMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67511More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the delivery of affordable housing targets in 2023–24.
Answer: My Department published an update on targets for the 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme on 30 July 2024. This covers the 2023-24 period under the previous government. It can be found on gov.uk here.
Answered 22 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordLocal Government FinanceMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67510More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to provide support to councils with high levels of financial distress.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 60682 on 24 June 2025 and to the Written Ministerial Statement made on 20 June 2025 entitled Fair Funding Review 2.0 and Modernising and Improving the Administration of Council Tax (HCWS724).Any ...
Answered 21 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordHousing: Brownfield SitesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67509More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many brownfield housing starts have been recorded in the last 12 months.
Answer: Figures on the number of housing starts specifically on brownfield sites are not centrally collected.
Answered 21 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordPlanning: StaffMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67508More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she has taken to increase local planning capacity.
Answer: Supporting local planning authorities to attract, retain and develop skilled planners is crucial to ensuring they provide a proactive, efficient planning service for local communities and that new developments are well designed and facilitate local growth...
Answered 21 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordPrivate Rented Housing: StandardsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67507More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department plans to take to improve the quality of private rented accommodation.
Answer: The Renters’ Rights Bill enables the Decent Homes Standard to be applied to the private rented sector for the first time and provides local authorities with effective and proportionate powers to enforce it.The Bill will allow ‘Awaab’s Law’ to be applied t...
Answered 21 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordCommunity DevelopmentMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67506More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department has taken to support community (a) cohesion and (b) integration.
Answer: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is leading cross-Government efforts to develop a longer-term, more strategic approach to community cohesion and integration working in partnership with communities and local stakeholders to rebuild...
Answered 17 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordBlockchainDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 14 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 67505More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had discussions with the British Blockchain Association on the potential of blockchain technology to (a) reduce fraud, (b) enhance transparency, (c) improve costs and (d) provide efficie
Answer: As the Chancellor set out her Mansion House Speech on Tuesday, we recognise the transformative potential for digital assets and blockchain technologies to drive economic growth in the UK and increase efficiencies across financial markets. We are proceedin...
Answered 17 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordInheritance Tax: Social MobilityTreasuryTabled 7 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65684More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes to inheritance tax on social mobility.
Answer: The estates of all individuals benefit from a £325,000 nil-rate band for inheritance tax. The residence nil-rate band is a further £175,000 and is available to those passing on a qualifying residence on death to their direct descendants, such as children ...
Answered 15 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordInheritance Tax: North EastTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65145More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department is taking to mitigate the regional economic impact of the inheritance tax changes on family businesses in the North East.
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordSmall Businesses: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65144More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has had discussions with representatives of Family Business UK on the findings of their June 2025 report on inheritance tax reform.
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordSmall Businesses: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65143More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to support family-owned SMEs with additional tax liabilities under reforms to Business Property Relief.
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordBusiness: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65142More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has considered introducing (a) sector-specific and (b) asset-based valuation methodologies for Business Property Relief claims by asset-intensive SMEs.
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture and Business: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65140More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes to (a) Business Property Relief and (b) Agricultural Property Relief on business (i) closures and (ii) divestment.
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordBusiness: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65139More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the report by Family Business UK and CBI Economics entitled Taxing Futures, published in June 2025.
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordBusiness: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65138More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what analysis her Department has conducted on the projected fiscal impact of the proposed cap on Business Property Relief; and if she will publish the modelling assumptions used to calculate the anticipated revenue
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordBusiness: Inheritance TaxTreasuryTabled 4 Jul 2025AnsweredUIN 65137More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes to Business Property Relief on family-owned businesses in (a) the North East and (b) the UK.
Answer: 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 businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advant...
Answered 14 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordFood: WasteDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 25 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 62759More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of introducing mandatory food waste reporting on food prices.
Answer: There are no plans to assess the potential impact of introducing mandatory food waste reporting on food prices. This Government has announced plans to publish a Circular Economy Strategy for England and is committed to transitioning to a circular economy ...
Answered 2 Jul 2025
Original Parliament recordEthanol: USADepartment for Business and TradeTabled 17 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 60581More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of increased tariff-free imports of ethanol under the US-UK trade agreement on (a) the viability of (i) Ensus UK and (ii) other domestic
Answer: Since the announcement of the UK-US Economic Deal on 8 May, the Secretary of State and senior officials from the Department for Business and Trade have been meeting with representatives of the bioethanol sector in the Tees Valley and Humberside to discuss...
Answered 20 Jun 2025
Original Parliament record
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