Environmental tax measures
Public Accounts Committee
Closed
Inquiry
Tax measures which have an environmental impact act alongside government’s wider environmental objectives. As these objectives have become more ambitious, the role of the tax system may become more important. HM Treasury’s 2020-21 review into funding the transition to a net zero greenhouse gas economy explicitly plans to “consider the …
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6
Recommendations
29
Conclusions
1
Report
1
Oral session
1
Letter
1
Event
Activity timeline 4 events
2 Sep
2021
2021
28 Apr
2021
2021
Report published
16 Apr
2021
2021
8 Mar
2021
2021
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 1 session
8 Mar 2021
View on parliament.uk
Environmental tax measures
Beth Russell · HM Treasury
Jim Harra · HMRC
Ruth Stanier · HM Revenue and Customs
Sir Tom Scholar · HM Treasury
Reports 1 report · click to expand
| Title | HC No. | Published | Items | Response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental tax measures | HC 937 | 28 Apr 2021 | 35 | Responded |
Recommendations & Conclusions
8 results
2
Recommendation
Not Addressed
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
HM Treasury cannot explain how it will manage declining revenues from consumption of fossil fuels,...
HM Treasury cannot explain how it will manage declining revenues from consumption of fossil fuels, worth £37 billion in 2019–20. HM Treasury has identified risks to £37 billion of revenue from taxes that are wholly dependent on the consumption of …
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Government Response
The government's response discusses issues with identifying clinically extremely vulnerable people, the development of a national GP dataset, and a forthcoming data strategy for health and social care, failing to address the recommendation on consulting for replacing declining fossil fuel revenues.
HM Treasury
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3
Recommendation
Not Addressed
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
We are concerned that immediate priorities have often outweighed action needed to support long-term environmental...
We are concerned that immediate priorities have often outweighed action needed to support long-term environmental objectives. Budgets in 2020 and 2021 froze the rate of fuel duty to help with the cost of living, while recognising that future rates would …
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Government Response
The government's response discusses local variation in the Shielded Patient List and future analysis by NHS Digital and DHSC, failing to address the recommendation for HM Treasury to consider and report on a tax roadmap to net zero.
HM Treasury
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4
Recommendation
Not Addressed
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
Tax impact assessments do not sufficiently recognise the potential for every tax measure to affect...
Tax impact assessments do not sufficiently recognise the potential for every tax measure to affect progress towards environmental objectives. The exchequer departments’ current definition of environmental taxes covers just four taxes with specific environmental objectives. Other established tax measures can …
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Government Response
The government's response discusses local authority confidence, shielding, and MHCLG's work with councils, failing to address the recommendation regarding environmental impact assessments for tax changes.
HM Treasury
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6
Recommendation
Not Addressed
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
We were concerned that HM Treasury and HMRC seemed to view the consequences of environmental...
We were concerned that HM Treasury and HMRC seemed to view the consequences of environmental taxes as the responsibility of other government departments. The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) has lead responsibility for all environmental policy areas …
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Government Response
The government's response consists of boilerplate text that does not address the recommendation for exchequer departments to consider and agree approaches for assessing tax impacts on environmental goals.
HM Treasury
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1
Conclusion
Not Addressed
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence...
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from HM Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).1
Government Response
The government stated it agrees with an unspecified recommendation and provided a target implementation date of Autumn 2021, while also describing HM Treasury's active role and ongoing analytical review related to environmental goals, but this does not address the committee's procedural conclusion.
HM Treasury
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7
Conclusion
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
We asked HM Treasury why it had not undertaken the comprehensive public review of the...
We asked HM Treasury why it had not undertaken the comprehensive public review of the options for environmental taxation that the Mirrlees Review had called for. HM Treasury said that in the past 10 years, it had done an enormous …
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HM Treasury
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32
Conclusion
Not Addressed
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
We found the picture for cross-government working on the operation of a tax was more...
We found the picture for cross-government working on the operation of a tax was more complex when we looked in detail at Landfill Tax and the Carbon Price Support. Landfill Tax has had both positive and adverse impacts, and HMRC …
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Government Response
The government's response explicitly quotes and rejects a different recommendation (Recommendation #6) from the committee, therefore not addressing the provided conclusion #32.
HM Treasury
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34
Conclusion
Not Addressed
Fifty-Fifth Report - Environmental…
The Carbon Price Support is one of a number of policy interventions which has contributed...
The Carbon Price Support is one of a number of policy interventions which has contributed to the large reduction in coal used by electricity generators based in Britain.70 However, the Mineral Products Association told us that the environmental outcome of …
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Government Response
The government's response explicitly quotes and rejects a different recommendation (Recommendation #6) from the committee, therefore not addressing the provided conclusion #34.
HM Treasury
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Correspondence 1 letter
16 Apr 2021
Correspondence from Tom Scholar, Permanent Secretary, HM Treasury, re Public Accounts Committee – Session of 8 March 2021, 24 March 2021
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