To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to Answer of 17 January 2023 to Question 120941 on 17 January 2023 on Safe Hands Plans: Finance, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the Financial Conduct Authority's response to concerns raised by his Department regarding Safe Hands Funeral Plans; and whether he will publish his Department correspondence with the Financial Conduct Authority on that issue.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to Answer of 17 January 2023 to Question 120941 on Safe Hands Plans: Finance, what estimate his Department has had made of the number of consumers who were at risk from Safe Hands Funeral Plans in July 2017.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2023 to Question 120941 on Safe Hands Plans: Finance, whether his Department made an assessment of the potential merits of providing support to Safe Hands’ customers at the time that those concerns were raised.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to Answer of 17 January 2023 to Question 120941 on Safe Hands Plans: Finance, whether his departmental officials contacted representative's of Safe Hands Plans to inquire into the risk those plans posed to consumers.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to Answer of 17 January 2023 to Question 120941 on Safe Hands Plans: Finance, whether his Department holds data on (a) how many more consumers bought a Safe Hands Plan after July 2017, and (b) the estimated average loss to each consumer who had bought a plan.

Safe Hands Plans went into administration in March 2022. The government understands that this situation is very concerning for customers of Safe Hands.

Since being made aware of misconduct across the funeral plan sector in 2017, the government and Financial Conduct Authority have dedicated significant resource to regulate the sector fully. This has ensured that those trying to make financial arrangements for their funerals now have the right regulatory protections.

The government’s work to bring pre-paid funeral plans into regulation has ensured that – for the first time – 1.6 million funeral plan consumers are protected from poor practice within the sector. Because of the action taken, it is now a criminal offence to sell pre-paid funeral plans without FCA authorisation.