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TREASURY
Utility Company Securities
14. Mr. David Shaw: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the effect on the valuation of utility company securities in (a) the national balance sheet and (b) the corporate sector balance sheet if a windfall profits tax was introduced on utility company pre-tax profits at a rate of (i) 10 per cent. and (ii) 20 per cent.
Mr. Nelson: Although it is not possible to estimate the precise impact, such a tax would hit significantly the value of utility companies, reduce investment and limit the scope for price reductions.
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Motor Fuel
15. Mr. Robathan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for how many years he intends to increase duty on motor fuel.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: The commitment remains to increase duty on road fuels in future Budgets by on average at least 5 per cent. in real terms.
VAT (Fuel)
16. Mr. Graham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on how VAT on domestic fuel will impact on households at differing income levels.
21. Mr. Ainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on how VAT on domestic fuel will impact on households at differing income levels.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: I refer to the oral answer that my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer gave to the hon. Member for Leeds, West (Mr. Battle) earlier today.
Incomes
17. Mr. Tony Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on income distribution.
Sir George Young: Real incomes have risen on average for all economic status groups since 1979--risen 50 per cent. for pensioners, risen for the unemployed, risen for those in full-time work and in part-time work and risen for the self employed. Sound finance and sustained growth are the only way to raise living standards for all, rich and poor alike.
Taxation (Retired People)
19. Mr. William O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect of his recent tax proposals on retired people who have savings over £3,000; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke: The increase in the personal income tax allowance for the aged announced in the Budget is worth over £2 a week for most basic rate paying pensioners. This is on top of a rise in pensioners' real income after tax averaging about 50 per cent. between 1979 and 1992.
Living Standards
20. Ms Eagle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on living standards.
Sir George Young: I refer to the oral answer that my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, gave to the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Mrs. Roche) earlier today.
22. Mr. Bayley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he intends to reduce the basic rate of VAT during the life of the current Parliament.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: As my right hon. and learned Friend made clear in his Budget, he has no plans to reduce the standard rate of VAT.
Ms Primarolo: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) at what financial threshold the decision is taken in
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respect of the prosecution of an individual or organisation for value added tax avoidance;(2) what is his estimate of the level of value added tax avoidance.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory [holding answer 13 December 1994]: Tax avoidance is not an offence. There are no comprehensive, reliable estimates for the total of VAT avoided.
Child Benefit
23. Mr. Peter Bottomley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when, in the past five years, he or his predecessors have announced increases in the level of child benefit.
Mr. Aitken: The information is in the table.
Date of Announcement |Effective Date |Announced by ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 24 October 1990 |8 April 1991 |Secretary of State for Social Security 19 March 1991 |7 October 1991 |Chancellor of the Exchequer 21 October 1991 |6 April 1992 |Secretary of State for Social Security 12 November 1992 |12 April 1993 |Secretary of State for Social Security 1 December 1993 |11 April 1994 |Secretary of State for Social Security 30 November 1994 |10 April 1995 |Secretary of State for Social Security
Budget Representations
24. Mr. Thurnham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received following his Budget statement.
Sir George Young: Since my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Budget statement on 29 November, we have received a number of representations from organisations and individuals, on a wide range of Budget-related issues.
Single Currency
25. Mr. Gill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to renegotiate the timetable for a single currency at the forthcoming intergovernmental conference.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: No. The United Kingdom protocol to the treaty of European Union, negotiated by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister at Maastricht, provides that the United Kingdom is not obliged to join a single currency. Any notification of United Kingdom intention to do so would require a prior Act of Parliament.
Macro-economic Policy
26. Mr. Hain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes he plans for macro-economic policy.
Mr. Aitken: Macro-economic policy will continue to be set to achieve permanently low inflation and sound public finances. Chapter 2 of the "Financial Statement and Budget Report" 1995 96 sets out the framework of the Government's macro-economic policy.
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Interest Rates
27. Mr. Booth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what effect interest rate changes since October 1990 have had on industry's interest rate bill.
Mr. Nelson: It is estimated that interest rate changes from October 1990 to date, when fully passed on, will have lowered companies' interest bills by at least £10.5 billion a year.
29. Mr. Mullin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received about interest rates levied by the main clearing banks; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nelson: My ministerial colleagues and I continue to receive letters from clearing banks' personal and business customers about interest rates, but their number is diminishing, with rates now at levels well below those of a few years ago.
Balanced Budget
28. Mr. Liddington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to achieve a balanced budget.
Mr. Aitken: In the Budget, the public sector borrowing requirement was projected to fall rapidly over the next few years, and to be in small surplus by 1998 99.
Executive Pay
30. Mr. Norman Hogg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals he has in respect of excessive executive pay rises.
Mr. Alfred Morris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to curb excessive executive pay rises; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Aitken: The Government believe that companies should exercise restraint in setting remuneration packages for their executives and that they should reflect performance. The Government do not consider that its proper role is to set levels to pay for executives of private companies. The salaries and other remuneration of any private company are a matter for the company and its shareholders.
Investment
Dr. Howells: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the effect his Budget will have on investment levels in the United Kingdom economy.
Sir George Young: I refer to the oral answer that I gave earlier to the hon. Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston (Mr. Miller).
Public Bodies (Underwriting Activities)
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer from the Secretary of State for Wales to the hon. Member for Vale of Glamorgan (Mr. Sweeney) of 12 December 1994, Official Report, columns
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515 16, which Government agencies and non- departmental public bodies other than the Welsh Development Agency have taken part in the underwriting of (a) Government privatisation share issues and (b) private share issues; and if he will list the share issues and in which year each underwriting activity occurred.Sir George Young: The information requested is not held centrally.
Vehicles
Mr. David Marshall: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the total loss of revenue to the Treasury if the number of vehicles using Britain's roads were to be reduced by 1 per cent.; and if he will make a statement.
Sir George Young: Assuming that a 1 per cent. reduction in the number of vehicles on the roads was accompanied by a 1 per cent. reduction in the use of road fuels, then the loss of revenue would be around £200 million. This takes account of reduced receipts of vehicle excise duty, road fuel duties and consequential VAT. It takes no account of any increased receipts that might arise from increased spending on other items.
Tax Exemption Certificates
Mr. Robert Ainsworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many 714 tax exemption certificates were issued in each of the last five years;
(2) what estimate he has as to the loss of revenue resulting from the non- payment of national insurance contributions arising from both employer and employee contributions exempted under 714 tax exemption certificates;
(3) what estimate he has of the loss of revenue arising to the Exchequer from abuse of the SC60 self-employed taxation system; (4) what estimates have been made of the loss of revenue resulting from work being done under 714 tax exemption certificates relative to the position that would obtain if those same employees worked within PAYE.
Sir George Young: The numbers of certificates issued or renewed were as follows:
|Numbers
------------------------
1989-90 |273,357
1990-91 |224,830
1991-92 |240,459
1992-93 |213,010
1993-94 |203,735
It is not possible to make any meaningful estimate of revenue loss resulting from the particular tax treatment of self-emoployed workers in the construction industry.
Gift Aid
Mr. Battle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of donations to charity were made through gift aid for each year since its introduction.
Sir George Young: Information is not available on total donations to charities. The numbers and amounts of donations made under the gift aid scheme are shown.
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Number of donations |Amount of donations
|(£ million)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1990-91<1> |10,270 |32.2
1991-92 |55,160 |163.3
1992-93 |81,150 |218.3
1993-94 |123,850 |245.6
<1> From 1 October 1990.
Exchange Rates
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the increase in the value of sterling against the ecu since its lowest point in 1993; and what is the forecast effect of such a change on imports and exports of manufactures after one, two and three years in terms of volume.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 14 December 1994]: Figures for the sterling ecu exchange rate are available on the Central Statistical Office, which can be accessed through the House of Commons Library. Export and import volumes are affected by a number of factors, including world trade, growth in United Kingdom export markets, export profit margins, domestic demand and competitiveness. A forecast of the growth in non-oil trade volumes taking into account all relevant factors was published in chapter 3 of the "Financial Statement and Budget Report".
Retail Prices Index Advisory Committee
Mr. Matthew Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to receive a report from the retail prices index advisory committee.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke: I have today received two reports from the Retail Prices Index Advisory Committee. It makes recommendations on the treatment in the RPI of owner-occupiers' housing costs and cars. The full reports are being published this afternoon as Cm 2717 and Cm 1716 respectively and copies are available in the Vote Office. In due course, I will announce my response to the recommendations. The committee has now completed its consideration of the topics in its current terms of reference.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Advisory Committee
Mr. Tyler: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the number of meetings held, the secretarial and advisory arrangements, the budgeted and actual expenditure and the subjects of the reports and submissions produced by the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee in each of the last three years.
Mrs. Browning: The Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee has held three meetings each year since 1992. The secretariat is provided by this Department and the Department of Health. The budget for the SEAC is shared between MAFF and DH but the DH provision is not separately identified within an overall committee
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budget. Overall expenditure by the two Departments in the past three years was:1992--£9,271
1993--£6,995
1994--£7,089
The committee regularly provides advice to Ministers, and where appropriate, this is put in the public domain, as in the reply given to the hon. Member for Woodspring (Dr. Fox) on 30 June 1994, Official Report, columns 657 58. SEAC produced an interim report in 1992 which has been placed in the House Library, on research into transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. A further report is in preparation.
Consumers Committees
Mr. Tyler: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the number of meetings held, the secretarial and advisory arrangements, the budgeted and actual expenditure and the subjects of the reports and submissions produced by each of the consumers committees in (a) 1992, (b) 1993 and (c) 1994.
Mr. Jack: The consumers committees for Great Britain and for England and Wales met as one body five times during 1992, six times during 1993 and twice during 1994. The Scottish committee last met in 1975. Secretarial and advisory duties are part of the
responsibilities of three officials in this Department.
Figures of expenditure are as follows:
|Actual
|Budget |expenditure
Financial year |£ |£
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1992-93 |7,000 |5,682
1993-94 |6,435 |4,940
1994-95 |6,000 |1,826
|-expenditure to 12 December 1994
In accordance with the Agricultural Marketing Act 1958, the views of the committees on the effects on consumers of agricultural marketing schemes are made known to Ministers in writing from time to time.
Badgers
Mr. Tyler: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the number of meetings held, the secretarial and advisory arrangements, the budgeted and actual expenditure and the subjects of the reports and submissions produced by the Consultative Panel on Badgers and Tuberculosis in each of the last three years.
Mrs. Browning: The Consultative Panel on Badgers and Tuberculosis met once in 1991 and twice in both 1992 and 1993. The Ministry provides secretarial support to the panel and consistently draws on the panel's advice in determining its policies on badgers and bovine tuberculosis. The budget for each of the last three financial years was £4,728, £5,000 and £10,000 respectively with actual expenditure of £2,777, £2,558
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and £6,720. The increase for 1993 94 reflected one off costs for a scientific seminar in November 1993 to review research with leading experts from the United Kingdom and Ireland. There have been no reports or submissions published by the panel during the last three years.Mr. Morley: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what monitoring there is of active badger setts along the route of the new A30 in east Devon; how many licences have been issued to disturb badger setts in this area; to whom they were issued; when they were issued; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Paul Beresford: I have been asked to reply.
English Nature is the appropriate licensing authority and issued one licence in August this year to environmental consultants who have surveyed 14 badger setts, including outlier holes, along the new A30 in east Devon. Monitoring of all setts is continuing throughout the coming winter to determine their current status of occupation. Under the Data Protection Act 1984, identification of individual licence holders is confidential.
Advisory Committees
Mr. Tyler: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the functions and objectives of (a) the Sugar Beet Research and Education Committee, (b) the Consultative Panel on Badgers and Tuberculosis and (c) the Salmon Advisory Committee.
Mr. Jack: The functions and objectives of the three bodies are described in their terms of reference. These are:
(a) The Sugar Beet Research and Education Committee
"The Committee is appointed by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Secretary of State for Wales to advise on an annual programme of research and education in matters affecting the growing of home-grown sugar beet."
(b) The Consultative Panel on Badgers and Tuberculosis "i) To keep under review the evidence relating to bovine tuberculosis in badgers, including its distribution, its prevalence and its relationship to bovine tuberculosis in cattle;
ii) to advise on operations to be undertaken by the Ministry in order to limit the transmission of tuberculosis from badgers to cattle;
iii) to recommend research appropriate to the problem of badgers and bovine tuberculosis."
(c) The Salmon Advisory Committee
"To examine and report on those matters relating to the conservation and development of salmon fisheries in Great Britain which are referred to it by Fisheries Ministers."
Mr. Tyler: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the number of meetings held, the secretarial and advisory arrangements, the budgeted and actual expenditure and the subjects of the reports and submissions produced by the Advisory Committee on Pesticides in each of the last three years.
Mrs. Browning: The Advisory Committee on Pesticides met on six occasions during 1994 and 1993 and five times in 1992. Details of the secretarial and
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advisory arrangements along with details of matters discussed and recommendations made by the committee are published each year in the Advisory Committee on Pesticides annual report. Copies of the report are held in the House Library. The committee has an annual budget of £40,000. Expenditure for the last three years was £32,889--1993 94, £26,022--1992 93, and £30,606--1991 92.Mr. Tyler: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the number of meetings held, the secretarial and advisory arrangements, the budgeted and actual expenditure and the subjects of any reports and submissions produced by the Sugar Beet Research and Education Committee in each of the last three years.
Mr. Jack: The committee met four times in the financial year 1991 92, four times in 1992 93, and five times in 1993 94 excluding open days and special sub-groups. Secretarial support to the committee is provided by MAFF, and the committee's advice is given to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Secretary of State for Wales.
Expenditure on committee members' attendance fees, and on travelling expenses for the Committee and its secretariat was as follows:
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|1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94
---------------------------------------------
Budgeted |9,075 |9,710 |13,000
Actual |7,649 |10,213 |<1>7,861
<1> Subject to audit.
The Sugar Beet Research and Education Committee advises Ministers on the annual research and education programmes required by section 68 of the Food Act 1984. Details of the programmes are set out in the annual Sugar Beet (Research and Education) Orders--S.I. 1992/405, S.I. 1993/397 and S.I. 1994/407.
Agricultural Support
Sir Ralph Howell: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the overall cost to the Exchequer of support to United Kingdom agriculture in each of the years 1964, 1970, 1980, 1990 and 1994 in actual and 1994 prices: if he will show each figure as a percentage of gross domestic product; and what was the percentage of net disposable income spent on food in each of these years.
Mr. Jack: The available information on total expenditure on agriculture in the United Kingdom and household expenditure on food is given in the table.
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|Household
|Expenditure on |expenditure on food
|Total expenditure on|agriculture as a |as a percentage of
|agriculture in the |percentage of Gross |Personal Disposable
|United Kingdom |Domestic Product |Income
Year |£ million<1> |£ million<1> |Per cent. |Per cent.
|Current Prices |1993 Prices
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1964 |264 |2,736 |0.77 |20.5
1970 |259 |1,998 |0.49 |18.2
1980 |1,012 |2,083 |0.43 |14.8
1990 |1,910 |2,178 |0.34 |11.0
1993 |3,015 |3,015 |0.47 |10.0
<1> Financial years.
Sugar Beet
Mr. Geoffrey Robinson: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how much per tonne is given to European farmers for growing sugar beet; and what is the value on the world market of sugar per tonne.
Mr. Jack: In the 1994 95 marketing year, European growers should receive, from those to whom they sell, at least the
Community-established minimum prices of 38.69 ecu/tonne--£36.89/tonne --and 23.89 ecu/tonne--£2.78/tonne --respectively, for sugar beet contributing to A and B quota sugar.
Currently, quota sugar is being sold on the world market, with the aid of export refunds, at around 340 ecu/tonne--£324.22/tonne . The cost of the refunds is largely offset by production levies on growers and processors.
Although the facility for intervention exists within the regime, no sugar is currently intervened, processors are paid storage aids on the tonnage they hold, the costs of the scheme being covered by a levy at point of first sale.
1 ecu = £0.953575
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