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Mr. Redmond : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what consultation his Department has had with the World Health Organisation in respect of crop fungicides alar, mancozeb, maneb and zineb ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : The Department is represented on the FAO/WHO Codex committee on pesticide residues which meets annually. This committee considers recommendations for maximum residue levels and acceptable daily intakes, and has discussed the active ingredients daminozide (used in the product Alar) mancozeb, maneb and zineb.
Helicopters
Mr. O'Brien : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what advice his Department issues on the use of helicopters near horses and other animals ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : I am not aware of any particular problems caused by helicopters near horses or farm animals and the Department has not issued specific advice on this issue.
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Pressure Stock Licences
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has had any representations about claims by official receivers that pressure stock licences given to individuals under entitlement are company rather than individual assets ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : I have not received any representations in these terms. Fisheries Departments issue licences both to individuals and to companies in respect of named vessels. Most licences are transferable between vessels and between owners, provided that conditions attached to licence transfer are met. Transferable licences thus acquire a financial value and can be either company or individual assets, depending on the particular circumstances.
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has any plans to review the scope and wording of pressure stock licences.
Mr. Curry : The scope and wording of pressure stock licences are kept under constant review.
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the legal status of all pressure stock licences ; and if he has any further plans to review the future of the licensing regime.
Mr. Curry : Pressure stock licences are granted at the discretion of Fisheries Ministers, and within an announced framework of rules, using powers from section 4 of the Sea Fish (Conservation) Act 1967, as amended, and the Sea Fish (Licensing) Order 1989, as amended. The licensing scheme is kept under constant review.
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the monetary value of pressure stock licences that his Department assumes when licences are given to or acquired by individuals under entitlement.
Mr. Curry : Pressure stock licences acquire monetary value in so far as they are transferable between vessels and between owners. These values are matters for the buyers and sellers concerned and my Department makes no assumptions about them.
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what distinction his Department draws between the monetary values of pressure stock licences held by individuals and those by companies ; and what assessment he has made of the level of trading in licences which takes place.
Mr. Curry : I refer my hon. Friend to my answer to his separate question on the value of licences. Under the current rules, licences can only be transferred between owners upon application to the Fisheries Departments when the vessel to which the licence applies is sold. Vessels are regularly traded both by companies and individuals, and the prices set are matters for negotiation between the individuals or companies concerned.
Farm Woodland Scheme
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the operation of the farm woodland scheme ; and if he will
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indicate the area taken into the scheme ; expenditure (a) incurred to date and (b) committed for the future ; and what is his estimate of common agricultural policy savings resulting from the scheme.Mr. Curry : In the first 16 months of the farm woodland scheme applications to plant a total of 9,740 hectares throughout the United Kingdom have been received. United Kingdom expenditure incurred as at the end of January 1990 amounted to £1,378,000 for planting grants and £240,347 in annual payments. United Kingdom future expenditure commitments in respect of approvals to plant as at the end of January 1990 amount to £6,519,097 for planting grants and annual payments of £1,112,004 per year. An estimate of common agricultural policy savings resulting from the scheme will be made as part of the review of the scheme in 1991.
Catering Facilities
Mr. Morley : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the cost of installing (a) a ministerial dining room in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and (b) a new kitchen as part of that installation ; what company manufactured the kitchen units ; and what was their country of origin.
Mr. Curry [holding answer 19 February 1990] : During refurbishment of the building, one room is being furnished to serve mainly as a conference room and to double as a dining room when necessary. The cost of works and furnishings is approximately £8,500. The kitchen replaces a wholly inadequate kitchen facility. The cost of units, appliances and works is approximately £9,800. The work was carried out by a British firm following competitive tender. All the kitchen units are of British manufacture and mainly of British wood.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Residential Care
Dr. Goodson-Wickes : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the basic weekly costs of care in a nursing home for (a) the elderly, (b) Alzheimer's disease sufferers and (c) the physically disabled ; and what levels of income support are available to people in each of these categories.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : I regret that figures are not available in the form requested. The levels of fees charged are a matter between proprietors and residents or their relatives and will depend upon various factors, including the facilities available and the degree of care provided.
The levels of income support available are dependent on the type of care a person receives and are subject to national limits. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced on 25 October at column 841 the limits to be introduced in April.
Dr. Goodson-Wickes : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what representations he has received calling for extra Government assistance to be available to income support dependent elderly persons, Alzheimer's disease sufferers and the physically disabled in residential homes where charges are in excess of income support levels.
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Mrs. Gillian Shephard : We have received a number of representations from a variety of interested organisations and individuals.National Insurance Benefits
Mr. Frank Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list each change in national insurance benefit entitlement since 1979 and the number of claimants affected.
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Mrs. Gillian Shephard : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 26 January 1989 to the hon. Member for Leeds, West (Mr. Battle) at columns 712-14, which listed the main changes to national insurance benefits since 1979. The numbers affected by each of these changes could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Further changes occurring since that reply are given in the table.
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|Financial year |Number affected
|change introduced
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UB abatement for occupational/personal pension reduced from age 60 to 55 |1988-89 and 1989-90 |45,000 in a full year
Weekly earnings rule introduced for UB |1989-90 |5,000 at any one time
UB "full extent normal" rule-de minimis provision |1989-90 |1,000 at any one time
"Actively seeking work" test for UB |1989-90 |<1>50,000
Abolition of pensioners earnings rule |1989-90 |400,000 approx.
Widows: revised entitlement conditions for women widowed before April 1988 |1989-90 |20,000 approx.
<1> Includes unemployed people receiving Income Support only.
National Insurance Fund
Mr. Frank Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list each change since 1979 in the Exchequer subsidy to the national insurance fund and the annual savings made by each change ; and what is the cumulative saving to the Exchequer since 1979.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The estimated reduction in payments from the Consolidated Fund to the national insurance fund as a result of changes in the Treasury supplement for the financial years from 1979-80 to 1988-89 is shown in the table.
Year |Per cent. |Amount |Notional amount<1>|Reduction
|(£ million) |(£ million) |(£ million)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1979-80 |18 |2,343 |- |-
1980-81 |18 |2,848 |- |-
1981-82 |14.5 |2,433 |3,020 |587
1982-83 |13 |2,591 |2,890 |299
1983-84 |13 |2,807 |- |-
1984-85 |11 |2,597 |3,069 |472
1985-86 |9 |2,163 |2,644 |481
1986-87 |9 |2,412 |- |-
1987-88 |7 |2,135 |2,745 |610
1988-89 |5 |1,653 |2,314 |661
<1> This is an assumed figure, had the Treasury supplement remained at the level for the previous year.
Paternity Leave
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what paternity leave is allowed to staff in his Department ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Paternity leave is not available to civil servants at present. The Treasury is, however, finalising arrangements for the introduction of an entitlement to two days' paid paternity leave.
Local Government Finance
Mr. Callaghan : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people in the Greater Manchester area will be eligible for the community charge rebate.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : I regret that reliable estimates of numbers of recipients cannot be provided on a detailed regional basis. The models used by this Department produce estimates of the numbers of people expected to receive community charge benefit, not of numbers who may be eligible.
Pensioners (Incomes)
Mr. Roger King : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the most recent figures on pensioners' incomes ; and what were the comparable figures in 1974 and 1979.
Mr. Newton : Detailed analysis, recently completed, of data from the 1987 family expenditure survey shows that the average pensioners' total net income increased by over 31 per cent. in real terms between 1979 and 1987. Table 1 shows a breakdown of the individual components which contributed towards this increase.
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Table 1-Pensioners' Incomes
|1974 |1979 |1987 |real terms|real terms
|increase |increase
|1979-87 |1974-79
|Per cent.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total social security benefits |45.00 |50.50 |59.20 |17 |12
Occupational pensions |11.80 |13.20 |23.30 |77 |12
Savings income |10.70 |9.10 |20.90 |130 |-16
Earnings |13.60 |9.90 |7.90 |-20 |-27
Total gross income |81.10 |82.80 |111.20 |34 |2
Total net income |73.80 |75.90 |99.90 |31 |3
Notes:
1. Source: Family Expenditure Survey.
2. £s per week at 1987 prices.
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The analysis also shows that the proportion of pensioners in the lowest quintile of income distribution fell from 38 per cent. in 1979 to 24 per cent. in 1987. Pensioners who receive all of their income from state benefits have experienced a real increase of more than 27 per cent. over the same period. The figures also show that the average pensioners' gross income represented 61 per cent. of the average earnings of all manual workers.In 1987 a total of 73 per cent. of all pensioners received income from savings and the average amount that they received was £28.40. Also, 52 per cent. of all pensioners had an occupational pension and the average amount received was £44.80. Table 2 shows the comparable figures for 1974 and 1979.
Table 2-Pensioners' Income from Savings and Occupational
Pensions 1974, 1979 and 1987
|1974 |1979 |1987
--------------------------------------------------------------
Percentage of pensioners with savings
income |53.0 |62.0 |73.0
Average amount received from Savings
Income (£ per week) |20.50|14.60|28.40
Percentage of pensioners with
Occupational Pensions |35.0 |41.0 |52.0
Average amount received from
Occupational Pension (£ per week) |33.70|32.10|44.80
Notes:
1. Source: Family Expenditure Survey.
2. £s per week at 1987 prices.
3. Averages are for those who actually received savings
income/occupational pensions.
Computers
Mr. Hoyle : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what was the date on which the invitation to tender to run the social security computer operation at Norcross, Lancashire was published in the Official Journal of the European Commission ;
(2) what was the date on which the invitation to tender to run the social security computer operations at Livingston was published in the Official Journal of the European Commission.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : It is not the practice to publish in the Official Journal of the European Commission invitations to tender for service contracts such as those for the area computer centres at Norcross and Livingston.
Rents
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what information he has about the difference between rent officer determination and market rents since the implementation of new restrictions under the housing benefit regulations.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Information supplied by rent officers is being collected by the Department of the Environment and will be published in due course.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what provision exists to ensure that if rents are increased as a result of inclusive private sector rents becoming net rents after the abolition of the rating system such increases are not caught by subsidy restrictions imposed by rent officer determination.
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Mrs. Gillian Shephard : We intend to introduce arrangements in the 1990-91 subsidy order to allow authorities to receive full subsidy on housing benefit paid in respect of any element of rent which, prior to 1990, was treated as rates. When the rent is next referred to the rent officer in the normal way (after a maximum of 12 months), the rent officer will look at the full charge, and the subsequent position will depend on the new determination.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Income Tax
Mr. Allen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the income tax yield would be were all incomes below £100 zero rated, and incomes at £100 per week rated at 1 per cent., with each £4 rise in income incurring a further 1 per cent. increase in tax up to a limit of 40 per cent. tax rate for incomes of £260 per week and above.
Mr. Lilley : At 1990-91 levels of income, the yield in a full year under the proposed rate schedule would be some £10 billion less than under the 1989-90 income tax rates and allowances indexed by 7.7 per cent. to 1990-91.
The estimate allows for the start of independent taxation in April 1990. It is based on a projection of the 1987-88 survey of personal incomes and is therefore provisional.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many families with children are estimated to have taxable incomes below the income tax threshold ; and what proportion this represents of all families with children.
Mr. Lilley : In 1989-90 it is estimated that some 1.6 million families with children have taxable incomes below the income tax threshold. These represent about 23 per cent. of all families with children. The estimates are based on a projection of the 1987 family expenditure survey and are therefore provisional.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total amount of income tax collected from people resident in Wales during 1988-89, or the latest year for which figures are available ; and how much of this arose from payments made at (a) the standard rate and (b) the higher rate of tax.
Mr. Lilley : The latest available information covers residents of Wales in 1987-88 and is in terms of liabilities rather than tax collected. Total income tax was about £1.5 billion of which some £65 million was in respect of tax in excess of the basic rate.
Customs and Excise
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the review into the relocation of Customs and Excise activities will be complete ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Ryder : At the moment I have nothing to add to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucester (Mr. French) on 15 November ( Official Report, column 316 ) but I hope to be able to make a statement shortly.
Interest Rates
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many families (a) with children and (b) without have lost more as a result of increased interest
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rates since the Budget of 1988 than they have gained as a result of Budget changes made in 1988 and 1989 ; and what are the amounts by which they are worse or better off at various total income levels.Mr. Lilley : Families will have benefited from many Budget measures since 1988, with the size of the gain depending on a range of other factors as well as total income levels. Many families will also have seen other changes in their circumstances since March 1988. There is thus no satisfactory basis on which to answer the hon. Member's question.
Business Expansion Scheme
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax relief has gone to the BES on residential property ; and what his estimate is of the BES tax relief on residential property in 1989-90 and 1990-91.
Mr. Lilley : The cost of BES tax relief on residential property in 1988-89 is provisionally estimated as £110 million. Costs in 1989-90 and 1990-91 will depend on take-up.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what areas of activity have been outlawed from BES investments over the last three years ; and how much tax was forgone for ongoing BES investment made in these areas in 1988-89 and 1989-90.
Mr. Lilley : Nearly all trades qualify under the business expansion scheme. A trade does not qualify if it consists to a substantial extent of non-qualifying activities ; these are set out in section 297 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988. No activities have been added to this list in the past three years.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has for each of the years of the existence of BES on the percentage and amount of BES money invested in residential and assured tenancy schemes.
Mr. Lilley : The business expansion scheme was extended to include investment in private rented housing in 1988-89 and £350 million was invested. This comprises about 85 per cent. of total BES investment in the year. Information is not available for 1989-90.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has for each of the years of the existence of BES of (a) the cost of BES to the Exchequer, (b) the percentage of investments made by high rate taxpayers, (c) the cost to the Exchequer divided into top rate and other taxpayers and (d) the number of net new jobs created as a result of BES.
Mr. Lilley : The estimated cost of BES tax relief for 1983-84 to 1989-90 is as follows :
|£ million
-------------------------------
1983-84 |50
1984-85 |75
1985-86 |85
1986-87 |95
1987-88 |110
<1>1988-89 |130
<1> Provisional.
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A forecast of £60 million for the cost of relief for the business expansion scheme in 1989-90 was published in the Government's expenditure plans, 1990-91 to 1992-93 (chapter 21, reference CM1021, appendix F), but no information is yet available centrally from official sources to provide a reliable estimate of the outturn. Information is not available on the percentage of investments made by higher rate taxpayers, the cost to the Exchequer divided into top rate and other taxpayers, and the number of net new jobs created as a result of BES.Taxation
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the average individual cumulative gain (a) in current prices, (b) in 1988-89 prices and (c) in 1990-91 prices to those earning £5,000, £10,000, £15,000, £20,000, £25,000, £30,000, £40,000, £50,000, £60, 000, and £70,000 as a result of changes in taxation and national insurance since 1979.
Mr. Lilley : Estimates of the annual change in liability resulting from the changes in income tax rates, allowances, and thresholds and national insurance contribution rates and limits are in the table. All estimates are based on a provisional 1989-90 income base projected from the 1987-88 survey of personal incomes. The 1978-79 income tax regime has been indexed to 1989-90 levels by reference to the statutory formula and national insurance contribution limits have been indexed by the change in the RPI between October 1977 and October 1988. The post-October 1989 NIC rates are used for 1989-90. For the purposes of these calculations, the indexed regimes of 1978-79 are directly applied to the income base of 1989- 90. In practice, retention of these regimes, indexed as appropriate, for the intervening years would have led to changes in the income base.
Average reduction in income tax and National Insurance
contributions per tax unit<1> in 1989-90 compared with 1978-79
indexed regimes
£ per annum
Range of total |At |At |At
income |1988-89 |1989-90 |1990-91
in 1989-90 (£) |prices |prices |prices
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Under 5,000 |140 |150 |160
5,000 to 10,000 |290 |310 |320
10,000 to 15,000 |510 |550 |590
15,000 to 20,000 |680 |730 |780
20,000 to 25,000 |960 |1,030 |1,090
25,000 to 30,000 |1,360 |1,470 |1,550
30,000 to 40,000 |2,070 |2,220 |2,360
40,000 to 50,000 |3,860 |4,150 |4,400
50,000 to 60,000 |6,390 |6,870 |7,280
60,000 to 70,000 |9,540 |10,260 |10,870
Over 70,000 |29,970 |32,220 |34,150
Total all incomes |870 |930 |990
<1> Married couples and single people paying either income tax or NIC under
the 1978-79 indexed regimes.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what is the reduction in annual liability to (a) capital gains tax and (b) capital transfer tax in 1989-90 and 1990-91 as against the 1979-80 indexed regime, specifying in each case the total and average reduction per taxpayer as well as the number of taxpayers in each year ;
(2) what is the reduction in annual liability to (a) capital gains tax and (b) capital transfer tax in
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1989-90 and 1990-91 as against the 1978-79 indexed regime specifying in each case the total and average reduction per taxpayer as well as the number of taxpayers in each year.Mr. Lilley : Latest available estimates for 1989-90 and for 1990-91, based on the 1989-90 regime with statutory indexation, are as follows :
Head of tax and regime for comparison
Capital gains tax Capital transfer
tax/Inheritance tax
|Indexed |Indexed |Indexed |Indexed
1978-79 1979-80 1978-79 1979-80
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reduction under present regime in:
Total liability (£ million):
1989-90 |1,400 |1,450 |680 |820
1990-91 |1,350 |1,400 |650 |780
Average liability<1> (£):
1989-90 |2,100 |1,950 |8,900 |10,100
1990-91 |2,450 |2,300 |9,400 |10,400
Taxpayer numbers (thousands)
Indexed regime:
1989-90 |670 |730 |77 |81
1990-91 |550 |600 |68 |75
<1> The reduction in the average liability is calculated using estimated numbers of taxpayers under the indexed 1978-79 or 1979-80 regime.
The numbers of taxpayers based on the tax regimes in force in 1989-90 and in 1990-91, assuming statutory indexation of the 1989-90 regimes, are :
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thousands
|Capital gains tax|Inheritance tax
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1989-90 |180 |26
1990-91 |150 |22
The figures for capital gains tax exclude capital gains realised by companies and taxed within corporation tax. For each tax, the 1989-90 and 1990-91 tax bases are taken as given. It is not possible to determine to what extent changes to the taxes between 1978-79 or 1979-80 and the present may have affected the levels of transfers and disposals. The above comparisons can therefore be regarded as no more than indicative of the orders of magnitude involved.
Incomes
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the investment income and earned income in 1988-89 and 1989-90 of (a) the top 1 per cent., (b) the top 5 per cent., (c) the top 20 per cent., (d) the top 30 per cent., (e) the bottom 70 per cent., (f) the bottom 50 per cent. of taxpayers and (g) all taxpayers.
Mr. Lilley : Estimates are given in the table. They are based on a projection of the 1987-88 survey of personal incomes and are provisional. All estimates are subject to a large degree of uncertainty since some investment income on which tax is deducted at source is not reflected in the survey.
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Total investment income and earned income
(£ billion)
Group of income taxpa1988-89 1989-90
|Investment|Earned |Investment|Earned
|Income |Income |Income |Income
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Top 1 per cent. |4.5 |14.7 |5.8 |16.2
Top 5 per cent. |9.1 |43.2 |11.6 |47.7
Top 10 per cent. |11.9 |68.6 |15.6 |75.5
Top 20 per cent. |15.8 |107.6 |20.8 |118.5
Top 25 per cent. |17.2 |124.2 |22.7 |136.8
Bottom 70 per cent. |9.8 |119.4 |12.6 |131.9
Bottom 50 per cent. |6.2 |69.9 |7.9 |77.1
All taxpayers |28.1 |259.0 |36.9 |285.2
Privatisations
Mr. Allen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the maximum number of individuals who have owned shares in each of the privatised companies ; and how many individuals currently hold shares in those companies.
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Mr. Lilley : The information the hon. Member requested is as follows. Information for the 10 water companies is not yet available. The latest Treasury/stock exchange survey showed that in 1989 there were 9 million individual shareholders in the United Kingdom, three times as many as in 1979.
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Company
----------------------------------------
British Petroleum
British Aerospace
Cable and Wireless
Amersham International
Britoil
Associated British Ports
Enterprise Oil
Jaguar
British Telecom
British Gas
British Airways
Rolls Royce
BAA
British Steel
<1> Figures taken from the latest
available reports and accounts.
<2> Three further sales in November
1979, September 1983 and October 1987.
<3> There was a second issue in May
1985 with 260,000 successful
applications.
<4> Two further issues took place in
November 1983 and December 1988.
<5> Second issue in August 1985 with
241,000 successful applicants. Became a
BP subsidiary in 1988.
<6> A sale of the residual shareholding
took place in April 1984.
Corporation Tax
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much corporation tax was collected between 1984 and 1988 as a result of major public companies selling their leasing subsidiaries ; and how many of these arrangements are monitored by the special investigations section.
Mr. Lilley : This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Jack : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the value of energy costs allowed against United Kingdom companies' liability to corporation tax in each of the last five financial years.
Mr. Lilley : I regret that the information requested is not available.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps are currently taken by the Inland Revenue to check that company expenditure offset against corporation tax as general company expenses is not being used to fund donations to political parties or organisations.
Mr. Lilley : The Inland Revenue takes the same action in relation to political donations as to any other expenditure not allowable for tax purposes.
Companies (Leasing Subsidiaries)
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax has been (a) assessed and (b) collected from those financial institutions that funded the purchase of major public companies' leasing subsidiaries between 1984-88, in respect of these arrangements.
Mr. Lilley : This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the policy of the Inland Revenue towards the sale by public companies of their leasing subsidiaries between 1984-88 and towards the scope for tax avoidance afforded the purchaser ; and what assessment, in these circumstances, the Inland Revenue makes of the true value of the transaction.
Mr. Lilley : The Inland Revenue examines such transactions to ensure that they are dealt with properly for tax purposes.
Leasing Schemes
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the policy of the Inland Revenue, in assessing leasing schemes for tax relief, in respect of establishing that the taxpayer has, in fact, completed meetings and signed documents on the dates claimed ; and what are the Inland Revenue manpower considerations involved.
Mr. Lilley : As in other areas of investigation, whatever steps seem appropriate in individual cases are taken to verify the facts where there are doubts about the true sequence of events. It is not possible to isolate the manpower costs associated with such verifications.
Personal Data
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many members of staff in the Inland Revenue have been disciplined for breaching internal regulations on the disclosure of personal data within the last five years.
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