Tag Archive for Treasury Select Committee

TREASURY ‘RHETORIC NOT MATCHED BY RECORD’ ON TAX EVASION

July 27, 2012 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

As a Treasury minister brands paying a plumber cash in hand as “morally wrong” today [24 July], the SNP questioned what had happened to a UK Government promise to recruit 2,000 tax inspectors after it emerged that the number of specialist and criminal investigations staff employed by HM Revenue and Customs has fallen by 1,274 since the Coalition came to power.

In his keynote speech to the Liberal Democrat conference in September last year Treasury Chief Secretary Danny Alexander promised that more than 2,000 tax inspectors would be recruited to crack down on tax evasion.

However, a parliamentary question by SNP Treasury spokesperson Stewart Hosie MP shows that the number of HMRC Enforcement and Compliance staff – including specialist and criminal investigations teams – have fallen by 1,274 since 2010.

Mr Hosie, a Member of the Treasury Select Committee, said:

“While welcoming measures to crack down on tax evasion, the Treasury’s rhetoric is not matched by its record.

“Last year Danny Alexander promised to recruit an additional 2,000 tax inspectors, yet the Treasury’s own figures show that enforcement and compliance teams, including specialist and criminal investigations staff, have been cut by 1,274.

“And in making sweeping comments about tradesmen and women the Tories ignore the reality of the environment in which small businesses operate where there is little alternative to cash payments – which of itself, of course, does not constitute tax evasion. Tax evasion in all its forms is to be deplored, and the Treasury should also be working to simplify the tax system.”

BANKING STANDARDS INQUIRY WILL BE JUDGED ON ANSWERS

July 5, 2012 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

The SNP has expressed regret that calls for an independent judge-led public inquiry into the standards in the banking industry have been rejected this afternoon, but said the joint parliamentary committee would now be judged on the answers it provided.

SNP Treasury spokesperson Stewart Hosie MP offered his full support to the joint parliamentary committee that will now be established and called for the Labour party to co-operate to make the inquiry as effective as possible.

 

Mr Hosie – a member of the Treasury Select Committee – said:

 

“It is disappointing that the UK Government chose not to support a full judicial inquiry, but getting to the bottom of this rate-rigging scandal is more important than the mechanism we use to do so.

“The joint parliamentary inquiry will now be judged on the answers that it provides.

 

“Given we are going down the route of a parliamentary inquiry, we must work together to ensure it is as effective as possible and thoroughly tackles the issues in the banking sector.  It must have a broad remit, wide membership and full cross party co-operation. I urge the Labour party to end the wrangling over process and focus on the investigation.”

 

10 QUESTIONS LABOUR MUST ANSWER ON LIBOR

July 2, 2012 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

Commenting on the emerging facts around LIBOR fixing in the financial system, SNP Treasury spokesman Stewart Hosie MP said:

“What we need is full transparency from the Labour party and from the Financial Services Authority.

“Alistair Darling was Chancellor, Gordon Brown was both Chancellor and Prime Minister and Ed Balls was economic secretary to the Treasury during the time LIBOR fixing was going on.

“The question is what exactly did Mr Darling, Mr Brown and Mr Balls know and when? And what were the regulators doing over a three-and-a-half year period?

“Were Darling and his colleagues asleep at the wheel or did they know what was going on yet fail to take any action?

“The consequences of LIBOR fixing for the economy are almost endless particularly in the context of a financial crisis, which is why we need transparency and openness more so now than ever.

“For too long Labour has been trying to pretend that the economic crisis had nothing to do with them – but now we know that Mr Brown, Mr Balls and Mr Darling were in charge during the entire period of the scandalous LIBOR fixing.”

HOSIE RESPONDS TO LIBOR STATEMENT

June 28, 2012 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

Responding to a statement by the Chancellor today (Thursday) on the
manipulation of the Libor rate, SNP Westminster Treasury spokesperson
Stewart Hosie MP called for the Financial Services Bill, currently
being considered by parliament, to be reviewed to ensure that the
Financial Conduct Authority is equipped with ‘powers and sanctions’ to
deal with the scandal.

Mr Hosie – a Member of the Treasury Select Committee – said:

“The scale of the manipulation of Libor – described by the FSA as
lasting for three and a half years is truly scandalous. It is
incredible that, at the present time, this manipulation is not a
criminal offence.

“The public will quite rightly be asking what on earth the FSA was
doing for the three and a half years that this was happening and,
equally, this scandal raises questions for those who occupied Downing
Street at the time that this abuse was going on – Labour’s Gordon
Brown and Alastair Darling.

“While Barclays will be held to account for their actions by
shareholders and regulators, it is clear that Westminster’s
catastrophic regulatory and supervisory failures were the co-authors
of this scandal.

“The last Labour government’s age of irresponsibility is catching up
with Alistair Darling and Gordon Brown.

“The evidence over who is responsible for the economic crisis, and the
regulatory failures which contributed to it, all lead directly back to
Downing Street. The failure of regulation was ‘made in Downing Street’
– numbers 10 and 11.

“With the Financial Services Bill still before parliament we must take
the opportunity to ensure that the new Financial Conduct Authority has
both the powers and the sanctions to deal with this sort of abuse.”

HOSIE CHALLENGES ANTI-INDEPENDENCE PARTIES TO COME CLEAN ON “STRONGER TOGETHER” CLAIMS

May 31, 2012 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

Speaking ahead of a conference on the Economics of Scottish Independence at the British Banker’s Association in London this evening (Thursday), SNP Treasury spokesperson Stewart Hosie MP, who will set out the positive economic case for independence, challenged the anti-independence parties to come clean on their “stronger together” claims.

 

Mr Hosie laid down the gauntlet with examples in key reserved policy areas – defence, pensions, energy and the oil industry – which illustrate how decisions being made at UK level were working against Scotland’s best interests.

 

Mr Hosie said:

 

“The SNP have been putting a positive case for independence and we will continue to promote our vision of a fairer, greener and more prosperous Scotland. But the anti-independence soundbite that we are somehow “stronger together” cannot go unchallenged.

 

“The debate needs to be based on facts, not fiction, and the facts show that Scotland is being undersold by the current set-up.

 

“On defence, how can we be stronger together when Scotland has only 4 of 148 major regular army units based in its territory? We have seen a disproportionate decline in Scotland’s defence footprint, with an underspend of over 5.6 bn and the loss of more than more than 11,000 jobs over the last decade. That’s not stronger together – that’s being sold short.

 

“On pensions, where is the strength in a union when the Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander effectively threatens the Scottish Government with budget cuts if it doesn’t impose UK reforms on the Scottish public sector, restricting what it can do with its own workforce? That’s not stronger together – that’s being held over a barrel.

 

“On energy – how can it be in Scotland’s interests to charge for transmission based on distance from population centres, so a generator in Aberdeenshire is charged £21.49 per kw to connect to the grid, while a London-based generator receives a subsidy of £6.85? This policy is damaging rural Scotland’s vast renewables potential. That’s not stronger together, but being hung out to dry.

 

“And on the oil industry, the Treasury’s cash cow, what did Scotland gain from the decision to unilaterally hike up the supplementary charge from 20% to 32%, threatening a crucial industry for a quick buck? No independent Scottish Government would ever treat the industry in this way. That’s crass economic foolishness, not strength.

 

“These and countless other examples provide evidence that the best people to make decisions about Scotland are the people who live here. Scotland will be stronger when all policy decisions are made in the Scottish Parliament..

 

“After independence Scotland and the rest of the UK will all benefit from a new partnership of equals on these isles, based on strong social bonds and mutual respect.”

 

Hosie Stresses Value of Better Links With China

February 3, 2012 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

Scottish business could benefit greatly from better direct relations with their counterparts in China, according to Dundee East MP Stewart Hosie. The SNP member of the UK Treasury Select Committee flew to Singapore yesterday as part of the Treasury Select Committee’s fact-finding mission to China.

Stewart said: “This is now a well trodden path for politicians and business people as we all work out how to build a solid profitable relationship with one of the world’s largest and fastest growing economies.

“First Minister Alex Salmond visited China last November and the Prime Minister was there in 2010.

“This is vital. Not just for prosperity here in Scotland but to ensure that the massive imbalances in the global economy are tackled. And these imbalances are huge. While the UK has a National debt of £1 trillion – China has a surplus in 2010 of $305 billion and a staggering $3 trillion in foreign currency reserves!

“To explain the extraordinary success of China, here is another fact. Chinese exports of goods have increased 682% since 1998, to reach 9.5% of the entire world’s exports in 2009.

“Given the size of the Chinese economy and indeed the other large emerging economic powers of Brazil, Russia and India it is astonishing that the UK still exports more to Ireland than the combined value of our exports to all these countries combined (£24 billion as opposed to £19 billion).

“It is incredibly important that Scottish firms export to China and take advantage of the huge opportunities which are there.

“Of course there have already been some notable successes.

“Sales of fresh Salmon to China have risen to almost £20 million since agreement was reached to allow direct exports. Likewise direct exports of whisky have reached almost £64 million. But there is much more that can be done.

“So our visit will see the Treasury Committee meet with Banks and Businesses in Singapore and a heavy schedule in China with the Financial Services Sector, the world’s largest commodities market and a series of meetings with academics, economists from the Chinese banks and Government.

“So while I am there to learn, I will also be taking every opportunity to tell our friends in China that Scotland in general and Tayside in particular is a fantastic place to do business and invest.

“Indeed we have already seen some of this potential with the near £1 billion investment by PetroChina into Ineos, owners of the Grangemouth oil refinery.”

 

PM’s JOB PLAN ISN’T WORKING: TIME FOR PLAN B – SNP CALL FOR SUMMIT

January 6, 2012 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

Following on from an admission on tonight’s ITN News by the Prime Minister
that the UK Government’s plan to create jobs isn’t working but maintains
he will continue with the approach, SNP Treasury Spokesperson, Stewart
Hosie MP said:

“It has been clear for many months that the Coalition’s plan isn’t
working. With this admission, we must also see a change of course from the
Coalition Government.

“The Scottish Government are currently using all the levers available to
stimulate growth and boost jobs with ‘Plan MacB’ which is increasing
infrastructure spending and switching resources from revenue to capital in
order to deliver new schools, hospitals, houses, roads, water
infrastructure, and improved availability of high speed broadband across
Scotland.

“This plan is working. For the past 13 consecutive months, the employment
rate in Scotland has been higher than that across the UK as a whole. The
UK Government must follow this example.

“The SNP is calling for a jobs summit, bringing together ministers from
the devolved administrations and UK Government to devise a further package
of measures which work in getting people back to work.”

HOSIE CALLS FOR MYNERS’ RESIGNATION

March 31, 2009 Stewart Hosie MP No comments

‘MINISTERIAL CAREER A CATALOGUE OF FAILINGS’

SNP Treasury spokesperson Stewart Hosie MP has called for the resignation of Lord Myners after it was revealed, in a letter to the Treasury Select Committee today (Tuesday) from former RBS Chairman Sir Tom McKillop, that the City Minister was fully briefed about former chief Sir Fred Goodwin’s pension arrangements. Lord Myners previously insisted he had no knowledge of the detail of Sir Fred Goodwin’s pension arrangements.

Commenting, Mr Hosie said:

“Lord Myners’ position is untenable and he should resign or be removed from office.

“In his short ministerial career, he has presided over a catalogue of failings from the Goodwin pension mess to his failure to properly negotiate a solution for the Dunfermline.

“Gordon Brown’s government is lurching from one fiasco to another, and enough really must be enough.”

 

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