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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 24 July 1990
DEFENCE
Small Businesses
Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the achievements of (a) his policies and (b) his Department in helping small businesses over the last 12 months as against the previous 12 months ; and if he will publish the performance indicators by which his Department monitors those achievements and the statistical results of such monitoring.
Mr. Alan Clark : The Government have continued to place a high priority on helping small businesses, through improvements to the business climate, through deregulation and other measures, and through specific programmes of support and assistance.
To assist in obtaining better value for money through broadening its competitive base, the Ministry of Defence has continued to provide a new suppliers service responsible for encouraging and assisting small firms to compete for defence business. Over the past 12 months the new suppliers service has attended a wide range of seminars and "meet-the-buyer" events and has given advice to about 2, 200 companies on how to sell to the Ministry of Defence. The Ministry of Defence has also continued to produce a fortnightly contracts bulletin, which includes notice of almost all contracts the Department expects to place valued at more than £500,000. Since 1 January 1990 clothing and textile requirements have been included in the bulletin at a lower threshold of £250,000. The bulletin will shortly include details of sub-contract opportunities, which will be of particular value to small companies. The success of these measures to encourage a widening of our supplier base is in part reflected by our having placed 67 per cent. of headquarters contracts by value by competition or otherwise by reference to market forces in 1989-90. Details of payments made by the Ministry of Defence to small firms in 1989-90 are not yet available.
In addition, the small firms research initiative aims to encourage small firms to bid for research work. In 1989-90, 36 research contracts were placed with small firms at a total value of £1.3 million.
Government Contracts (Profit Formula)
Mr. Patrick Thompson : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the report by the review board on its sixth general review of the profit formula for Government contracts.
Mr. Alan Clark : The main recommendation in the report is for an increase, based on comparability, in the overall target rate of return on non-competitive contracts.
After careful consideration I have concluded that we cannot adopt that recommendation and that the current target rate should remain in force. This decision implies no
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criticism of the review board. It is based on my assessment in present circumstances that the maintenance of the existing target rate for such contracts will ensure adequate industrial resources to meet our current needs.The report raises a number of other issues relating to the operation of the profit formula and the pricing of non-competitive contracts. My officials will be pursuing these with representatives of the CBI and with the review board, as appropriate.
A copy of the review board's report has been placed in the Library.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Interviews (Tape-recording)
Mr. Lawrence : To ask the Attorney-General what assessment he makes of the effect of tape-recorded interviews of suspects upon the speed of trials, the delays in bringing cases to trial and the number of pleas of guilty being entered.
The Attorney-General : The effect of tape-recorded interviews has not been assessed pending the completion of the nationwide introduction of the scheme.
Armagh Courthouses (Union Flag)
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Attorney-General for what reasons the Union flag is no longer flown on the flagpole on top of the courthouses in Armagh city ; whether the Union flag being flown on a pole at ground level at the courthouse has been damaged ; and if he will make a statement.
The Attorney-General : The flagpole on top of the courthouse at Armagh is no longer used for safety reasons. This position affords little or no protection when raising or lowering the Union flag and staff were in danger of falling. The new flagpole was fixed to the inward side of the perimeter wall. A flag was damaged on barbed wire at the new location. Two strands of barbed wire have been removed, and a new flag supplied. It has been flown subsequently without difficulty.
Factortame
Mr. Knapman : To ask the Attorney-General, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Southend, East (Mr. Taylor) of 26 June, Official Report, columns 141-42, if he will make a further statement on the juridical implications of Factortame, in the light of the decision of the House of Lords.
The Attorney-General : The Factortame case was reinstated in the House of Lords on 2 July and the hearing concluded on 9 July. It has been indicated that the House of Lords has decided in principle to grant interim relief in favour of the applicants to the effect that the Secretary of State for Transport should not withhold registration in respect of any fishing vessel if the owner is an "original applicant" for interim relief who is disentitled to registration under section 14 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 by reason only of a failure to meet the conditions requiring directors and shareholders of owning companies to be resident and domiciled in the United Kingdom. It would be inappropriate to comment further on the House of Lords' decision until it has determined the form of its order and it has given its fully reasoned judgment.
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Small Businesses
Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the achievements of the Lord Chancellor's Department in helping small businesses over the last 12 months as against the previous 12 months ; and if he will publish the performance indicators by which his Department monitors these achievements and the statistical results of such monitoring.
The Attorney-General : The Government have continued to place a high priority on helping small businesses through improvements to the business climate, through deregulation and other measures, and through specific programmes of support and assistance.
The Lord Chancellor has implemented a number of policies designed to ensure that all litigants enjoy the greatest possible quality and speed of service from the civil courts. However, as these policies are not specifically targeted on small businesses, no performance indicators are kept in this regard.
The Lord Chancellor's Department has continued to encourage the use of small businesses as suppliers in line with the Government purchasing initiative. Within the last 12 months guidance issued by the Department of Employment--Central Unit on Purchasing has been circulated to all purchasing and supply staff, and there has
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been participation in a "meet the buyer" event. The Department's estimated total expenditure with small firms--fewer than 200 employees--in 1989-90 was £14 million.THE ARTS
Works of Art (Disposal)
Mr. Faulds : To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will specify the allocations made to public institutions in the United Kingdom during the half year ended 30 June of individual works of art and museum objects pre- eminent for national, scientific, historical or artistic interest which have been accepted in satisfaction of inheritance tax or capital transfer tax, together with information, where applicable, as to conditions or wishes expressed by testators or executors in the matter of allocation ; whether he will list the works of art and museum objects which are still awaiting allocation, with the respective dates of their acceptance in satisfaction of inheritance tax or capital transfer tax ; and whether a press notice will be issued from his Department covering the information given in his reply.
Mr. Mellor [holding answer 23 July 1990] : The information the hon. Gentleman requests is as follows :
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@
Items awaiting allocation
----------------------------------------------------------------
"Farm Cart with Horse in Harness" by
Harpsichord
"Richmond pres Londres" by Corot
Portrait by Beechey
Painting by Lucas de Heere
Two portraits by Gainsborough, one by
Rubens and a landscape by Seghers
@
Items awaiting allocation
----------------------------------------------------------------
"Farm Cart with Horse in Harness" by
Harpsichord
"Richmond pres Londres" by Corot
Portrait by Beechey
Painting by Lucas de Heere
Two portraits by Gainsborough, one by
Rubens and a landscape by Seghers
NATIONAL FINANCE
Tax System (Indexation)
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the latest estimate of the amount of revenue that would accrue to the Government from fiscal drag if the tax system were simply indexed in the 1991 Budget.
Mr. Ryder : Chapter 2 of the 1990-91 "Financial Statement and Budget Report" shows total taxes and national insurance contributions, including the community charge, rising from £206 billion in 1990-91 to £216 billion in 1991-92, on the assumption that the tax system is indexed in the 1991 Budget. This allows for the effects of real fiscal drag, and also for the build-up of effects of the 1990 Budget and earlier Budgets, including independent taxation for husbands and wives.
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Excise Duties
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the effect of not indexing excise duties in the 1991 Budget, by product, on (a) inflation and (b) revenues in 1991-92 and a full year.
Mr. Ryder : The effects of revalorising excise duties on the revenue yield and the retail prices index in 1991-92 and 1992-93 will be published in the autumn statement. The information requested will not be readily available before then.
Income Tax
Mr. William Powell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the amount of income tax the Exchequer would forgo in 1990- 91 (a) if all income from savings were exempted from the tax and (b) if income tax were chargeable only to higher rate taxpayers on such income.
Mr. Ryder : The direct revenue cost of exempting from income tax the investment income received by individual savers, including interest received on bank and building society accounts, national savings and dividends received from companies, is estimated to be about £10.5 billion. If the income from savings of higher rate taxpayers remained chargeable to income tax, at their marginal rate of tax, the cost would be reduced to about £5 billion.
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Incomes
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give (a) the gross incomes before tax and (b) the net incomes after tax of each income decile for each year since 1978-79 and also for the top 1 per cent. and the top 5 per cent. of the income distribution, the income level which is the dividing line between the deciles for the top 1 per cent. and 5 per cent. in each case for each year and the average income for each group during each year.
Mr. Ryder : The latest available analyses of the distributions of before and after tax incomes relate to the years 1978-79, 1981-82 and 1984- 85 and were published in the November 1987 issue of "Economic Trends", No. 409, a copy of which is available in the Library. The additional details and data for other years requested by the hon. Member could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
Local Authority Transactions
Mrs. Beckett : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish an updated version of table 6.7 in the "Financial Statement and Budget Report 1990-91".
Mr. Norman Lamont : The latest outturn figures for 1988-89 and 1989- 90 are shown in the table. These outturn figures are subject to revision as more information becomes available. It is not the normal practice to publish forecasts other than at Budget time.
|1988-89
|outturn |outturn
|£ billion|£ billion
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Receipts
Domestic rates and community charge |8.5 |9.5
Non-domestic rates |10.4 |11.2
Current grants from central government |23.8 |24.7
Capital grants from central government |0.8 |2.6
Other |5.6 |5.9
----- |----- |-----
Total receipts |49.2 |53.9
----- |----- |-----
Expenditure
Current expenditure on goods and services |36.4 |39.1
Current grants and subsidies |5.8 |6.3
Interest |4.6 |4.8
Capital expenditure and net lending |2.6 |4.9
----- |----- |-----
Total expenditure |49.5 |55.2
Taxpayers
Mrs. Beckett : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the latest estimate of the number of taxpayers divided into basic rate and top rate and by sex.
Mr. Ryder : Estimates for 1990-91 are as follows :
Millions
|Basic rate |Higher rate |Total
|(but not
|higher rate)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Males |15.0 |1.4 |16.4
Females |9.5 |0.3 |9.8
|----- |----- |-----
Total |24.5 |1.7 |26.2
The estimates are based on a projection of the 1987-88 survey of personal incomes and are provisional.
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Local Authority Expenditure
Mr. Dewar : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the expenditure by programme in England to which (a) Scottish block expenditure, and (b) Welsh block expenditure are held to be comparable for the purposes of the territorial allocation formula ; and if he will place in the Library a document explaining the implications for the operation of this formula of the introduction of the new planning total.
Mr. Norman Lamont : The annual public expenditure White Paper shows the individual programme elements of both the Scottish block and the Welsh block--table 15.1 of Cm. 1015 and table 16.1 of Cm. 1016 : housing and education. It is the corresponding English programmes which are held to be comparable. The introduction of the new planning total affects the programmes within the Scottish and Welsh blocks in the same way as it affects the corresponding English programmes.
Treasury Model
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what effects the Treasury model currently incorporates concerning the impact on the non-accelerating inflation rate of unemployment of the differences in regional levels of unemployment ; and what is the scale of these effects.
Mr. Norman Lamont : In common with other macroeconomic models of the United Kingdom economy, the Treasury model is not disaggregated to a regional level.
Retail Prices Index
Mr. Hanley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make a statement about the recent report of the Retail Prices Index Advisory Committee.
Mr. Major : As I told my hon. Friend the Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Mr. Forman) on 4 July, at column 577, the report examines how the price of holidays might be incorporated into the retail prices index and recommends that the Central Statistical Office should begin to collect relevant data and examine a new methodology which the committee has developed. However, there is no recommendation to include holiday prices in the retail prices index for the moment. I am asking the Central Statistical Office to put in hand the data collection and further work necessary to determine whether it will be possible to overcome the methodological problems associated with incorporating a holiday price index into the retail prices index in due course.
The report also examines the way financial services are taken into account in the retail prices index. On this it recommends that the annual fees which are being introduced for the holders of certain credit cards should not be covered by the retail prices index, and that any supplements which retailers might charge to customers using credit cards should also be ignored in constructing the index, at least for the present. It is also recommended that charges for personal banking services and transaction charges incurred by households buying and selling investments should be excluded from the index, but that the coverage of insurance should be extended to include personal accident and "protection-only" life insurance. I have decided to accept these recommendations.
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The full report is being published today as Cm. 1156 and copies are available in the Vote Office.Taxes and Benefits
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, further to his answer of 5 July, Official Report, column 699, when he will be able to provide up-to-date figures on the same basis as those provided to the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, East in his answer of 8 January, Official Report, columns 559-64, revising his figures to include an estimate of the effects of the introduction of the community charge ; and what estimate he has made to date of the effect on the tax burden of the introduction of the community charge.
Mr. Ryder [holding answer 12 July 1990] : It will be possible to provide estimates of the effects of the introduction of the community charge on the basis requested when relevant data from the family expenditure survey for 1990, the first year of the charge's operation in England and Wales, are available.
Stamp Duty
Mr. William Ross : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will publish a table in the Official Report to show for each stamp duty office in the United Kingdom the income for stamp duty, the number of transactions, the other functions and the other income, for each of the last three years ;
(2) if he will publish a table in the Official Report to show for each stamp duty office in the United Kingdom the sums of stamp duty raised on share transfers in each of the last three years and the number of such transactions in each of those years ;
(3) if he will publish his estimate of the sums saved, in cash and percentage terms, in (a) the sums raised and (b) the number of transactions in each stamp duty office in the United Kingdom when those offices move to a system of paperless transactions in 1992 ; (4) what is the anticipated cost of retraining staff in the Edinburgh stamp duty centre to comply with Northern Ireland stamp duty legislation ;
(5) if he will publish a table in the Official Report to show the functions common to all stamp duty centres in the United Kingdom and indicate any other functions which are carried out in each of the others which are not common, with particular reference to the Belfast office ;
(6) what is his estimate of the number of staff required to handle Northern Ireland stamp duty centre transactions in (a) 1991, (b) 1992 and (c) 1993 ;
(7) if he will publish a table in the Official Report to show the numbers of staff employed in each of the stamp duty centres in the United Kingdom at present and the total salaries of such staff in the current and past two years ;
(8) which of the functions of the Belfast stamp office he proposes to transfer to Edinburgh ;
(9) if he will publish a table in the Official Report to show how the anticipated saving of £160,000 by the transfer of functions of the Belfast stamp office to Edinburgh arises ; whether the calculations take account of (a) extra training, (b) increased postage and (c) the cost of increased liaison between the stamp duty office in Edinburgh and Northern Ireland Government Departments ; and if he will show the sums estimated for
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each of the three above headings and for each Northern Ireland Government Department for the three years after his proposed transfer of functions ;(10) how urgent cases, requiring immediate registration to secure priority under section 4 of the Registration of Deeds Act (Northern Ireland) 1970, will be dealt with after transfer of the functions of the Northern Ireland stamp duty office in Belfast to Edinburgh ; (11) what estimate he has made of the increased costs to (a) the legal profession and (b) the general public if the proposed transfer of functions of the Belfast stamp office goes ahead.
Mr. Ryder [holding answer 17 July 1990] : More time is needed to collect the necessary information and I shall write to the hon. Member when it is available and place a copy in the Library.
Privatisation
Mr. Gerald Howarth : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate (a) the number of individual shareholders in the United Kingdom and (b) the number who are direct shareholders in privatised companies.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 23 July 1990] : There are now nearly 11 million individual shareholders in the United Kingdom and over 5 million who are direct shareholders in privatised companies.
Mr. Gerald Howarth : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the amount of corporation tax received from privatised companies in 1989-90.
Mr. Ryder [holding answer 23 July 1990] : The companies privatised since 1979 paid about £1illion in corporation tax in 1989- 90.
South Yorkshire (GDP)
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer by how much gross domestic product per capita in south Yorkshire falls below (a) the Community average and (b) the United Kingdom average.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 23 July 1990] : In 1987, the latest year for which county figures are available, and taking the Economic Community average as 100, the figures are, based on purchasing power parities
|Average
-----------------------------------
Economic Community |100
United Kingdom |107
South Yorkshire |87
Community figures are based on estimates published by the statistical office of the European Communities.
Mortgage Tax Relief
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax relief goes on mortgage tax relief (a) at basic rate and (b) in excess of the basic rate in 1989-90 and 1990-91.
Mr. Ryder [holding answer 23 July 1990] : Provisional estimates are given in the table ; 1990-91 estimates are based on the assumption that interest rates remain at their current levels.
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<
Mortgage Interest Relief
Year |Total cost of |Cost of relief
|relief | at rates in
|excess of the
|basic rate of
|income tax
|£ million |£ million
------------------------------------------------------------
1989-90 |6,900 |430
1990-91 |8,000 |510
Gross Domestic Product
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the Government estimate gross domestic product will be in 1990-91 and 1991-92 both in current and constant prices.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 23 July 1990] : The information requested can be calculated from table 2.1 of the "Financial Statement and Budget Report 1990".
Capital Gains Tax
Mr. Allen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many people would pay more tax than they do at the present time if capital gains tax exemption were at the same level as the personal allowance ; what is their average pre-tax income and the distribution of income ; and what would be the average and distribution of increased capital gains tax payments ;
(2) how many people would pay more tax if capital gains tax exemptions were £3,000 ; what is their average pre-tax income and the distribution of income ; and what would be the average and distribution of increased payments.
Mr. Ryder [holding answer 23 July 1990] : It is tentatively estimated that about 260,000 individuals and trusts would pay more capital gains tax in 1990-91 disposals if the annual exempt amount were reduced from £5,000 to either £3,000 or £3,005--the 1990-91 personal allowance--assuming a proportionate reduction in the annual exempt amount for trusts. About 100,000 of these 260,000 losers are not expected to pay capital gains tax on 1990-91 disposals under current rules. The full-year yield from this change is estimated to be about £70 million, implying an average additional payment of about £275 per loser, but estimates of the distribution of extra payments are not available. The estimates allow for some change in taxpayers' behaviour in response to the reduced annual exempt amount, but do not allow for possible short-term effects. No allowance has been made for any change in the treatment of capital gains of companies which are taxed within corporation tax.
Estimates of the income distribution of the 260,000 losers are not available. Some information about the taxable income of capital gains taxpayers in 1985-86 is available in table 11.5 of "Inland Revenue Statistics 1989".
HOME DEPARTMENT
Departmental Property
Miss Hoey : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what steps are taken to make available properties disposed of by his Department to housing associations or local authorities ;
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(2) how many homes have been sold by his Department since the beginning of 1989 and in the last three months ; and what criteria are used in deciding to whom the properties will be disposed ; (3) what policy guidelines exist for his Department in dealing with empty properties.Mr. Waddington : The Department sold 2,575 prison officers' quarters during the 18-month period 1 January 1989 to 30 June 1990, of which 2,415 were sold to officers under the Department's discount sales scheme and 160 were sold as vacant houses on the open market. During the last three months of that period 223 quarters were sold, of which 194 were sold to officers and 29 were sold on the open market.
Most quarters are sold to officers in occupation under the Department's discount sale scheme. The policy in dealing with vacant quarters is that, unless they are to be retained for essential reallocation, redevelopment or security reasons, they are placed on the open market for sale to the general public at the best price obtainable. No special steps are taken to make such properties available to housing associations or local authorities.
Miss Hoey : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the money realised from any sales of domestic properties by his Department is treated.
Mr. Waddington : Receipts from the sale of prison officer's quarters are appropriations-in-aid and, as such, are offset against planned expenditure on the prison service. Any receipts in excess of the anticipated level go to the Consolidated Fund.
Warning and Monitoring
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what improvements have been made to monitoring posts since the review of warning and monitoring was completed ; what the costs of such improvements have been in each of the years 1987-88, 1988-89 and 1989-90 ; what further improvements are planned or under consideration ; and what the costs of any such further improvements are expected to be in each of the years 1990-91, 1991-92 and 1992-93.
Mr. John Patten : Since the review of warning and monitoring was completed, a supply of replacement generator sets has been made available to those monitoring posts whose equipment had become unserviceable. The cost was £26,000 in 1989-90. A study has been undertaken into the provision of ventilation systems and field trials are planned to evaluate costs and effectiveness.
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what possible replacements for AWDREY and other Royal Observer Corps instrument systems have been identified ; and how much such replacement systems are expected to cost.
Mr. John Patten : Possible replacement systems for AWDREY and other Royal Observer Corps instrument systems have been identified. The systems are based on seismic, optical and electromagnetic pulse detectors but further development is required before the full costs can be estimated.
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what options are being considered for
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the realignment of United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation sector boundaries ; and what estimates have been made of the costs of implementing these options.Mr. John Patten : Several options for revising the group and sector warnings and monitoring boundaries to conform with the home defence regions are under consideration. Work is continuing on estimating their costs.
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any progress has been made regarding the setting up of new systems to convey data within the United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation.
Mr. John Patten : A study is being conducted into the use of an enhanced emergency communications network to convey data within the United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation. This study will take account of the scope for introducing new information technology for both administrative purposes and wartime operations.
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what options are being considered for the collocation of UKWMO and Royal Observer Corps headquarters ; and what estimates have been made of the costs of implementing these options.
Mr. John Patten : The Property Services Agency has identified three collocation options for basing the United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation and Royal Observer Corps headquarters at Cowley, Oxford. A full feasibility study is to be conducted which will include estimates of the costs of each option.
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any conclusions have been reached regarding replacement RADIAC instrumentation for monitoring of nuclear fallout ; and what costs have so far been identified.
Mr. John Patten : No conclusions have been reached on replacing the RADIAC instrumentation for monitoring fallout. The costs will be identified when the customer requirements have been established.
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what options are being considered for the refurbishment and replacement of warning sirens ; and what estimates have been made of the costs of implementing these options ; (2) whether any alternative to the use of sirens for warning of air attack is under consideration.
Mr. John Patten : A study of the refurbishment and replacement of sirens has concluded that it would be expensive as a warning option. Further research is therefore being conducted on the cost effectiveness of alternative warning options such as the use of radio and television.
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