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Column 574
UskUpper Cwmbran
Tintern
Crew Green/Criggion
Llandenny
St. David's
Caernarfon
Newport
Trewem
Tonyrefail
Merthyr Tydfil
Knighton
Margam
Manafon
Abergynolwyn
Milford Haven
Capel Curig
Stepaside
Llwyndafydd
Ruabon
Barry
Caergwrle
Mostyn/Glan-y-Don
Llanover
Raglan
In all, there are some 91,000 people who cannot receive Welsh television services, but many of them, about 43,000, can receive English television services.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Taxation
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people faced marginal tax rates (a) including and (b) excluding national insurance payments, of (i) over 40 per cent., (ii) over 50 per cent., (iii) over 60 per cent., (iv) over 70 per cent., (v) over 80 per cent., (vi) over 90 per cent. and (vii) over 100 per cent. in every year since 1978-79, in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Dorrell : Estimated numbers of taxpayers liable to income tax at rates above the basic rate are in the table. Estimates of the numbers with marginal net income deduction rates, taking account of the withdrawal of social security benefits, at or above certain levels were published in figure 19 of "Social Security : The Government's expenditure plans 1993-94 to 1995-96", Cm 2213.
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Taxpayers<1> liable at higher rate (Thousands) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1978-79 |235 |158 |86 |84 |54 |45 |32 |36 |33 |763 1979-80 |302 |168 |108 |43 |53 |- |- |- |- |674 1980-81 |334 |216 |129 |52 |65 |- |- |- |- |796 1981-82 |445 |305 |170 |75 |95 |- |- |- |- |1,090 1982-83 |435 |245 |155 |65 |83 |- |- |- |- |983 1983-84 |355 |245 |140 |55 |65 |- |- |- |- |860 1984-85 |380 |255 |145 |65 |85 |- |- |- |- |930 1985-86 |380 |250 |150 |70 |100 |- |- |- |- |950 1986-87 |400 |300 |210 |90 |120 |- |- |- |- |1,120 1987-88 |360 |320 |240 |110 |160 |- |- |- |- |1,190 1988-89 |1,350|- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,350 1989-90 |1,500|- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,500 1990-91 |1,700|- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,700 1991-92 |1,620|- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,620 <3>1992-93 |1,800|- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,800 <3>1993-94 |1,900|- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,900 <1>Single people and married couples for years up to and including 1989-90, individuals from 1990-91. <2>Tax rate applicable to earned income. This excludes any liability to the investment income surcharge for years up to 1983-84. <3>Provisional estimates projected from the 1991-92 Survey of Personal Incomes.
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Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate for 1993-94 the number of basic rate and higher rate taxpayers with earned incomes above the national insurance contributions upper earnings limit, giving figures separately for (a) husbands, (b) wives, (c) single men and (d) single women and distinguishing between pensioners and non-pensioners.
Mr. Dorrell : Latest estimates of individuals aged under 65 with earned incomes above the national insurance contributions upper earnings limit for 1993-94 are given in the table. About 20,000 individuals aged 65 or over have earnings above this limit.
(000s)
Individuals |Basic rate |Higher rate
---------------------------------------------------
Single males |260 |260
Single females |130 |80
Husbands |1,010 |920
Wives |100 |70
|------- |-------
Total |1,500 |1,300
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate for (a) April 1994 and (b) April 1995 the percentage change in after-tax incomes for each decile of the population.
Mr. Dorrell : The change in after-tax incomes will depend on a range of factors that will affect what happens to the gross incomes and tax payments of those in each decile and cannot reliably be estimated.
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people with earnings so low that they do not pay income tax will be affected by the increases in indirect taxation announced in November's Budget.
Mr. Dorrell : It is estimated that there are about 3 million individuals with some earnings who are not paying income tax. It is not possible to determine the proportion of these people who will be affected by the increases in indirect taxation announced in the November Budget.
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people will be affected by his decision to reduce (a) the married couple's income tax allowance to 15 per cent. in 1994-95 and (b) mortgage interest relief to 15 per cent. from April 1995.
Mr. Dorrell : It is estimated that 10.3 million individuals benefiting from the married couple's allowance and related allowances in 1994-95 would be affected by the restriction of these allowances to 15 per cent. in 1995-96. The restriction of these allowances to 20 per cent. in 1994-95 will affect 9.6 million individuals. A total of 10.1 million single people and married couples will be affected by the restrictions of mortgage interest relief to 15 per cent. in 1995-96.
No account has been taken of possible behavioural changes resulting from such restrictions.
Disability Benefit
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what, in the latest year for which information is available, is the total number of people in receipt of disability benefit who pay income tax ; and how many pay VAT.
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Mr. Dorrell : It is estimated that in 1991-92 there were 200,000 tax -paying recipients of attendance allowance or mobility allowance. This estimate is based on Department of Social Security estimates of the total numbers in receipt of each benefit and estimates from the 1991 family expenditure survey of the proportions who were taxpayers.
The change from mobility allowance to disability living allowance and disability working allowance in 1992-93 means that information for later years is not yet available. The results of the 1993 family expenditure survey will provide data on these allowances when they are available.
VAT is chargeable on a wide range of consumer expenditure and it seems likely that everybody has to pay some in the course of a year.
Personal Allowances
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his decision not to uprate the personal allowance in 1994-95 will cost (a) 20 per cent. taxpayers and (b) basic-rate taxpayers per year ; and how much not uprating the personal allowance and the higher-rate band will cost top- rate taxpayers per year.
Mr. Dorrell : The additional tax liability for a person aged under 65 in 1994-95 compared with statutory indexation of the personal allowance and basic rate limit are as follows.
|Marginal rate of tax
---------------------------------------------------------------
Lower |14
Basic |17.50
Higher |103
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much he estimates will be raised by the Treasury in (a) 1994-95, (b) 1995-96 and (c) 1996-97 from the freezing of personal income tax allowances ; and how many more people he estimates will have to pay income tax by December 1994 as a result.
Mr. Dorrell : Latest estimates of the revenue yield in each of the three years, compared with statutory indexation, are as follows :
Revenue yield, £ million
|1994-95|1995-96|1996-97
-----------------------------------------------------
Allowances unchanged |430 |550 |560
In 1994-95, no one will be brought into income tax as a result of the November Budget changes. However, about 180,000 more people will pay tax in 1994-95 compared with statutory indexation of personal allowances.
Forward Catering Services
Mr. Welsh : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to ensure that employment rights under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 are to be honoured by the successful purchaser of Forward Catering Services ; if the Astra clause will be included as a condition of sale ; and if he will make a statement.
Column 577
text Mr. Nelson : The four companies which have been short listed as prospective purchasers of Forward understand that TUPE will apply to this transfer. All have indicated that they would be willing to give an undertaking to staff about their redundancy entitlements, although it was made clear that that would not be a condition of sale.
European Investment Bank
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he (a) last attended and (b) next expects to attend a meeting of the board of directors of the European investment bank.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : I am a member of the bank's board of governors, not of the board of directors. Consequently, I have never attended, nor do I expect in the future to attend, any meetings of the board of directors.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the current level of the United Kingdom's Government shareholding in the European investment bank ; what proportion it constitutes of the total shareholding ; what changes in its level there have been in the past (a) 10, (b) five and (c) one year ; and what proposals there are to amend it in either direction.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : The total subscribed share capital of the European investment bank is currently set at 57,600,000,000 ecus--£43, 530,834,341*. Of this, the United Kingdom holds 11,017,450,000 ecus-- £8,326,367,896*--or approximately 19.1 per cent. of the total. The bank's capital was fixed at its present amount on 1January 1991, when it was doubled from its then level of 28,800 mecu. The previous increase in capital, which was the only other change during the past 10 years, occurred on 1 January 1986. At that time the capital was raised from 14,400 mecu to 28,800 mecu.
There are at present no proposals to either decrease or increase the capital of the bank.
*Figures converted at 30 November 1993 £/ecu conversion rate (£1=1.3232 ecu).
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will now resign from the board of directors of the European investment bank.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : Since I am not, nor have I ever been, a member of the bank's board of directors, there can be no question of my resigning from this body. I have no intention of resigning my position on the bank's board of governors.
Share Sales
Mr. Hain : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 8 December, Official Report, column 231, if he will provide details of fees paid to underwriters associated with the share sales of British Telecom, British Gas and the regional water companies.
Mr. Dorrell : No. Fees paid to underwriters as part of the privatisation programme are treated as commercially confidential. Total fees paid to underwriters are quantified within the relevant National Audit Office reports published by the Comptroller and Auditor General. For the sales requested, with the exception of the BT secondary sales which were not underwritten, the total fees paid to underwriters were :
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|£million
---------------------------------------
BT |1984 |74.0
British Gas |1986 |60.0
Water |1989 |33.2
Mr. Hain : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 8 December, Official Report, column 231, if he will provide details of fees paid to advisers and underwriters associated with the privatisation and share sales of the regional electricity boards, Powergen and National Power.
Mr. Dorrell : No. Fees paid to advisers, underwriters, and so on as part of the privatisation programme are treated as commercially confidential. Total fees paid to advisers are quantified within the relevant National Audit Office reports published by the Comptroller and Auditor General. For the sales requested, the total fees, excluding VAT, paid to advisers and underwriters up to 31 December 1991 were :
£million
|Advisers |Underwriters
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Regional Electricity Companies 1990 |28.8 |36.6
Generating Companies 1991 |17.2 |14.9
Unemployment (Costs)
Sir Ralph Howell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the latest estimate of the overall cost of unemployment including all expenditure on training and all Government initiatives to reduce unemployment and also including all state support such as housing benefit, mortgage interest relief and all passport benefits paid whilst unemployed or undertaking unemployment reducing training and other programmes.
Mr. Portillo : The overall cost of unemployment is highly sensitive to the factors which cause that unemployment and cannot be estimated on the basis specified in the question.
TRANSPORT
Coastal Safety, Shetlands
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what resources are currently available for port state control inspection in Shetland;
(2) what resources were available in Shetland for ship inspection for port state control up until 22 November;
(3) what extra resources he intends to make available for futher port state control inspections of Klondyker ships (a) off Shetland, (b) off Ullapool and (c) elsewhere; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Norris : The inspection resources of the east of Scotland district in which Shetland lies are available as necessary for port state control inspection in Scotland. Resources from other districts are also available as necessary. In addition to the one surveyor permanently based in Shetland, three surveyors are currently carrying out inspections in Shetland.
Column 579
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what response he has given to Shetland Islands council's request for financial support for (a) radar surveillance, (b) aerial surveillance and (c) salvage provision around the coast of Shetland; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Norris : I will send the hon. Member a copy of the correspondence.
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list all short-term measures taken by his department since the sinking of the Braer to improve safety of shipping around the coast of Shetland.
Mr. Norris : Measures, which applied more widely than in the Shetland islands, were implemented quickly and will remain in operation. A voluntary code produced by the United Kingdom Chamber of Shipping after consultation with industry and others set out specific navigational recommendations for the routeing of ships around the United Kingdom coast.
In addition, the Department made specific proposals to the International Maritime Organisation which entered into force on 28 November. The measures, summarised as follows, now apply to vessels of all flags :
(a) for vessels over 5,000 gross tonnes carrying oil or other hazardous cargoes in bulk :
(i) amended "areas to be avoided" to the north south, and west of the Shetland Islands ;
(ii) new "areas to be avoided" off the Orkney Islands and around Fair Isle ;
(b) "precautionary areas" in the northern and south-eastern approaches to Yell Sound, and in the approaches to Lerwick ; (
(c) recommendations on navigation for laden tankers in the Pentland Firth ;
(d) recommendations to report to the coastguard for all laden vessels in the Pentland Firth, and off Fair Isle.
Recommended routes will be introduced for the Fair Isle channel subject to the successful completion in 1994 of further hydrographic surveys at an estimated cost of around £2 million.
Column 580
Klondyker Ships
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what loopholes in respect of ship safety regulation he has identified in relation to Klondyker ships inside United Kingdom territorial waters, but outside harbour boundaries ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Norris : We are considering the lessons to be drawn from recent incidents involving Klondykers. The subject is also relevant to the Donaldson inquiry, which has agreed to consider submissions on the subject, and we shall want to see the report before drawing firm conclusions.
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proposals he has for (a) monitoring and (b) enforcing, the intermediate recommendations of the marine accident investigation branch inquiry into Klondyker ships within Lerwick harbour in respect of (1) bunker fuel and (2) maintenance of vessels ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Norris : The inspections being carried out are monitoring bunker levels and general maintenance on each vessel. Evidence is emerging that these efforts have already brought about an improvement in the fleet in this respect. The code of practice now being prepared will specify particular requirements for bunker levels and maintenance.
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proposals he intends to submit to the EC concerning improved safety arrangements for Klondyker fleets.
Mr. Norris : My right hon. Friend is taking action under the powers available to him in domestic legislation. We shall involve our colleagues in the European Community when that is appropriate.
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list by name the Klondyker ships inspected by his Department in 1993 and include date of inspection, together with details of recommendations and in each case, whether the vessel was (a) in harbour or (b) outside the harbour boundary.
Mr. Norris : Fish factory ships inspected in United Kingdom between 1 January 1993 and 7 December 1993 were as follows :
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Name |Date |Location |Action
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stasys Girenas |22 January 1993 |In port |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
| found
Alderbaran |25 May 1993 |In port |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
| found
Birsk | 1 June 1993 |In port |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
| found
Chernomorskaya Slava |12 July 1993 |In port |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
| found
Pomor |29 July 1993 |In port |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
| and flag state consulted
Chernomorskaya Slava | 3 August 1993 |In port |Detained during fire on board
Akvamarin | 6 August 1993 |In port |Detained
Kandalasksha |31 August 1993 |In port |Flag state informed of deficiencies
| following grounding
Kandalasksha | 4 October 1993 |In port |Detained in drydock for repair
Kapitan Kononov |16 November 1993 |In port |Detained
Mys Frunze |22 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Dneprodzerhinsk |23 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Petrozavodsk |23 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Plutoniy |24 November 1993 |In port |Detained
Limoza |24 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Vasiliy Filippon |24 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
Serebryansk |24 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Pyotr Shafranov |25 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Novocheboksarsk |25 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
Dzintarkrasts |25 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Aktinia |26 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
President Pik |30 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Navigator |30 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Novator |30 November 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Ofelia | 1 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Kazan | 1 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Aleksandrit | 1 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Sevryba | 2 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies
Rus | 2 December 1993 |At anchor |None
Korunds | 2 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state aster instructed to rectify deficiencies. Flag state informed
Geroi Eltgena | 7 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Gantiadi | 7 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Pruzani | 7 December 1993 |At anchor |Master instructed to rectify deficiencies.
| Flag state informed
Column 583
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proposals he has to ensure the continued safety through inspection of the Klondyker fleet.
Column 584
Mr. Norris : A team of surveyors is currently inspecting the fleet of Klondykers anchored off Lerwick to ensure, in particular, their safety at anchor. Other marine districts will inspect Klondykers as and when they enter ports in their area.
Column 585
M11 Link Road
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if his Department have indemnified Norwest-Holst Construction Ltd. in respect of (a) compensation payments should the M11 link road contract be cancelled or delayed and (b) the costs of security on site ; and if he will make a statement.
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