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Sir George Young: Information is not available in the form requested. A certain amount of information on taxes paid and benefits received by broad groups of households is published in an annual article in "Economic Trends" entitled "Effects of taxes and benefits upon household income". The latest article appeared in the January 1994 edition of "Economic Trends", a copy of which is available in the Library. The results of this analysis are not designed for comparison between years because of changes in definition over time, particularly pre and post-1987 when a major revision to the methodology was adopted.
Mr. Chisholm: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what tax rate for income over £50,000 would have to be imposed in order to raise an additional £800 million of revenue.
Sir George Young [holding answer 13 December 1994]: An income tax rate of 47p on taxable incomes over £50,000 would raise about £800 million in 1995 96 and £1.3 billion in a full year. These estimates do not allow for any behavioural changes that might result from the introduction of the new tax rate and do not include capital gains tax.
Exchange Rates
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effects on Britain of withdrawal from the exchange rate mechanism and what plans he has to restore the rate of exchange against the deutschmark to its August 1992 value.
Mr. Nelson: It is not possible to assess the precise effects of sterling's departure from the ERM. However, during sterling's membership of the ERM, inflation fell sharply and the economy began to recover from recession. The Government recognise the value of stable exchange rates but do not set target rates. Movements in exchange rates are considered as part of the Government's general assessments of monetary conditions in setting monetary policy.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will make a statement on the current rate of exchange of the sterling against the ecu;
(2) if he will make a statement on the role of the exchange rate in the economy.
Mr. Nelson: Movements in the exchange rate are considered as part of the general assessment of monetary conditions in setting monetary policy. The Government recognise the value of a stable exchange rate but do not set target rates. Sterling's exchange rate against the ECU reflects day-to-day market trading in all the EU currencies.
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The exchange rate is only one factor among many affecting the economy, and it is difficult to isolate the effect of changes in the exchange rate from that of other factors.Manufacturing
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the forecast growth in the market for United Kingdom exports of manufactures divided between the EC and the rest of the world together with his forecast of the growth of United Kingdom exports of manufactures in each case.
Mr. Nelson: The Treasury does not publish forecasts dividing the growth of the United Kingdom's export markets for manufactures or its growth of exports of manufactures between the EC and the rest of the world.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the effect on the volume of imports and exports of manufactures of an increase of 10 per cent. in relative export unit values for manufactures; what was the change in the nominal exchange rate against the ecu and the change in the price of manufactures exported to the EEC between February 1993 and January 1994; and what contribution that made to the change in the profitability of manufacturing compared to the average for 1989 90.
Mr. Nelson: Estimates of the effect of relative prices changes on manufacturing volumes can be made using the Treasury model. This is available in the House of Commons Library. It is standard practice not to provide the results of simulations in reply to parliamentary questions due to excessive cost involved and the difficulty in making the appropriate assumptions without knowing the context in which the figures will be used.
Figures for the ecu exchange rate and manufacturing export prices are available on the CSO database, which can be accessed through the House of Commons Library. Manufacturing profitability depends on both manufacturing prices and manufacturers' costs. Company profitability has been strong recently. This reflects tight control over unit costs, rising output and the expansion of margins, particularly for exports.
Earnings
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were the average earnings of a full-time adult male worker in 1963 64, 1973 74, 1978 9, 1993 94 and forecast 1995 96; what was the percentage in each case of the amount payable in (a) direct and (b) indirect tax, including national insurance, health, public sector rents and all other charges; and if he will provide corresponding figures for those whose incomes were 10 times and 20 times greater than those earnings.
Sir George Young: Information on the earnings of full-time employees at April is published in the new earnings survey for 1973 and each year up to and including 1994. Prior to 1970, information on the earnings of manual employees was published in the "Ministry of Labour Gazette". Copies of these publications can be found in the Library. Information for 1995 96 is not available. For a given level of earnings, an individual's tax payments and other charges will depend on a variety of circumstances such as income, marital status, age and spending patterns.
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European Parliament
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will update his written answer dated 5 December 1980, Official Report, column 205, comparing the cost of maintaining a member of the European Assembly with the cost of maintaining a Member of the House of Commons, if he will update his answer expressing the figures in per capita terms.
Mr. Aitken: As we made clear in the reply dated 5 December 1980, no precise comparison is possible between the budgetary costs of the European Parliament and the House of Commons. However, the updated information is as follows:
£ millions
|<1>European |<2>House of Commons
|Parliament
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Members of the Institution
Salaries and pensions |<3>7.2 |22.2
Travel and subsistence |43.8 |9.9
Secretarial expenses |44.2 |26.9
Other |6.8 |12.5
Supporting staff
Salaries, allowances pension, etc. |<4>207.5 |<4>31.2
General expenses |25.9 |18.0
Accommodation
Rent |49.9 |<5>9.9
Operating costs |20.7 |25.6
Security |6.6 |12.3
Other Administrative costs
Stationery, office equipment etc. |40.6 |1.8
Publications |10.8 |8.6
Payments to Parliamentary bodies |16.1 |2.8
Other expenditure |<6>22.7 |-
|-------- |--------
Total |502.8 |107.5
Number of Members |567 |651
The per capita cost per member is therefore:
European Parliament: £886,772
House of Commons: £165,131
<1> The figures for the European budget have been taken from the 1994 Community budget and
converted to sterling at the budget rate of £1 = 1.3243 ecu.
<2>The figures for the House of Commons have been taken from 1994-95 estimates.
<3> Salaries for the Members of the European Parliament are paid for by national Governments
and are not included in the budget.
<4>The budget of the European Parliament covers the cost of 3,790 posts of which 679-17.9 per
cent.-are employed in the language service. The House of Commons administration vote covers the
costs of 1,317 staff.
<5> A nominal rent has been payable in respect of the Palace of Westminster since 1993-94.
<6> Includes £8.4 million in the reserve.
EU Membership
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring up to date for each year since 1974 the figures in paragraph 43 of Cmnd 6003 "Membership of the European
Community--Report on Renegotiation".
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Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: The United Kingdom's gross and net contribution to the European Community for each year from 1973 to 1993 are set out in the table. The
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figures in the final column of this table represent the Government's last published estimate for each of these years.Column 1073
United Kingdom's gross and net contribution to the EC budget
£ million
|Gross |Gross |Net contribution
|contributions |contributions after |after abatement
|before abatements |Negotiated |abatement and |Public sector |refunds and public
Year |of refunds |refunds |Abatement |refunds |receipts |sector receipts
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1973-74 |200 |- |- |200 |104 |96
1974-75 |197 |- |- |197 |232 |-35
1975-76 |370 |- |- |370 |354 |16
1976-77 |544 |- |- |544 |320 |224
1977-78 |941 |- |- |941 |382 |559
1978-79 |1,323 |- |- |1,323 |555 |768
1979-80 |1,665 |- |- |1,665 |781 |884
1980-81 |1,900 |645 |- |1,255 |1,022 |233
1981-82 |2,330 |959 |- |1,371 |1,146 |225
1982-83 |2,820 |774 |- |2,046 |1,308 |737
1983-84 |3,097 |239 |- |2,858 |1,897 |961
1984-85 |3,614 |589 |- |3,025 |1,892 |1,133
1985-86 |3,745 |- |323 |2,922 |1,930 |992
1986-87 |5,121 |- |1,343 |3,778 |2,557 |1,221
1087-88 |4,906 |- |1,137 |3,769 |1,958 |1,811
1988-89 |5,167 |- |1,600 |3,567 |2,400 |1,166
1989-90 |5,804 |- |1,317 |4,487 |2,035 |2,452
1990-91 |6,411 |- |1,838 |4,573 |2,388 |2,185
1991-92 |6,129 |- |2,428 |3,701 |2,757 |943
1992-93 |6,970 |- |1,993 |4,977 |2,810 |2,167
1993-94 |8,407 |- |2,350 |6,057 |3,864 |2,192
1994-95 |8,308 |- |1,89 |6,409 |3,963 |2,446
United Kingdom net contribution to EC budget
|1980-81|1981-82|1982-83|1983-84|1984-85|1985-86|1986-87|1987-88|1988-89|1989-90|1990-91|1991-92|1992-93|1993-94|1994-95
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Latest forecast announced by Chancellor on 23 November 1994 |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |2,192 |2,446
1994 Departmental Report |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |2,167 |2,166 |1,714
1993 Departmental Report |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |943 |2,100 |1,731 |3,142
1992 Departmental Report |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |2,185 |1,175 |2,763 |2,934 |3,322
1991 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |2,452 |2,079 |1,280 |3,060 |2,540 |-
1990 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,166 |2,159 |2,047 |1,830 |2,150 |- |-
1989 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,811 |1,110 |2,113 |2,100 |1,730 |- |- |-
1988 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,221 |1,604 |947 |1,610 |1,470 |- |- |- |-
1987 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |- |992 |1,259 |1,063 |600 |1,230 |- |- |- |- |-
1986 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |1,133 |974 |796 |1,300 |1,110 |- |- |- |- |- |-
1985 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |961 |831 |898 |774 |973 |- |- |- |- |- |- |-
1984 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |737 |622 |485 |665 |725 |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |-
1983 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |225 |711 |502 |584 |685 |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |-
1982 Public Expenditure White Paper |233 |160 |630 |710 |730 |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |-
|1973-74|1974-75|1975-76|1976-77|1977-78|1978-79|1979-80|1980-81|1981-82|1982-83|1983-84
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1981 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |- |- |884 |427 |450 |450 |450
1980 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |- |768 |957 |1,061 |1,200 |1,350 |1,550
1979 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |- |559 |680 |750 |830 |780 |870 |-
1978 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |- |224 |435 |690 |785 |855 |820 |- |-
1977 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |- |16 |225 |455 |555 |640 |690 |- |- |-
1976 Public Expenditure White Paper |- |-35 |25 |170 |220 |270 |315 |- |- |- |-
1975 Public Expenditure White Paper |96 |35 |130 |180 |230 |275 |- |- |- |- |-
1974 Public Expenditure White Paper |80 |90 |145 |195 |240 |- |- |- |- |- |-
1973 Public Expenditure White Paper |80 |125 |155 |195 |- |- |- |- |- |- |-
In this table the final outturn figure is always the last published outturn and may therefore be taken from a later public
expenditure White Paper or departmental report than indicated in the left hand column.
Exports
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the Bank of England's contention that United Kingdom exporters have been increasing their profit margins at the expense of volume exports.
Mr. Nelson: Over the past year, exports have increased strongly--in the third quarter export volumes, excluding oil and erratics, were up 14 per cent. on a year earlier--and export profit margins have also risen, reflecting tight control over unit costs.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the increase in the price of finished manufactures exported (a) to the EEC and (b) to non-EEC countries between 30 December 1992 and 31 August 1994.
Mr. Nelson: Price indices for United Kingdom exports of finished manufactures to other EC countries and to non-EC countries are published on a monthly basis. The figures are available on the Central Statistical Office database, which can be accessed through the House of Commons Library.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will publish his estimate of the current net rate of return as defined in CSO "First Release" (94)205 on exports of manufactures; and what were the figures for (a) 1972, (b) 1979, (c) 1988 and (d) 1990;
(2) what assessment he has made of the correlation between the net rate of return on exports of manufacturers in 1990 and 1993 and the rate of 7.4 per cent. and 5.8 per cent. for manufacturing as shown in CSO "First Release" (94)205; and if the rate being earned on exports in the third quarter of this year was higher than 7.4 per cent.
Mr. Nelson: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to him on 13 December, Official Report , column 587 .
Energy-saving Products (VAT)
Mr. Robert Ainsworth: To ask the chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to reduce the level of VAT levied on energy-saving products to 8 per cent.; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke: I have no plans to apply the 8 per cent. reduced rate of VAT to anything other than domestic fuel and power.
EU Budget Rebate
Mr. Spearing: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state the initial sum calculated by the Commission of the European Communities for the United Kingdom budget rebate for the years 1991 and 1992 together with the sums named in the final corrections for those years and the dates on which they were determined.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: The initial United Kingdom abatement figures for 1991 and 1992 were 2,921.2 mecu and 3,181 mecu respectively. The final corrections in respect of these years have yet to be determined by the
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European Commission. Details of the final correction for 1992 are unlikely to become available until 1996.Prices
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the weighted average increase since August 1992 in the retail prices of (a) goods other than food and revenue duty items and (b) services other than foreign holidays, mortgage interest and community charge or rates.
Mr. Nelson: The information requested is not available as there are no unique definitions of goods or services in the retail prices index and such aggregates can be produced only at disproportionate cost.
National Debt
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the change in the national debt since 1973; and how much of this is accounted for by the United Kingdom's contribution to the EEC.
Mr. Nelson: The change in the national debt since 1973 can be calculated from table 17.2 of part 1 of the "Bank of England Statistical Abstract 1994".
Figures for EC contributions since 1973 were provided in the answer which the Paymaster General gave to the hon. Member for Dover (Mr. Shaw) on 29 November, Official Report , columns 608-10 .
Taxation
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will update his answer to the hon. Member for Peckham (Ms Harman) of 19 January 1994, Official Report , columns 632-40 , and provide the latest estimates of the burden of direct and indirect taxes for (a) 1993 94, (b) 1994 95 and (c) 1995 96, including figures for the council tax and its predecessors, both in cash terms and as a percentage of earnings for (i) a single person, (ii) a married couple with no children, (iii) a married couple with two children, (iv) a married couple, both working, with no children, earning 50, 75, 150, 200, 300, 400, 500, 700, 1,000 and 2,000 per cent. of average earnings.
Sir George Young: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Oxford, East (Mr. Smith) on 19 December 1994. Official Report, columns 944 50.
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of gross domestic product was taken by (a) income tax, (b) corporation tax, (c) capital gains tax, (d) inheritance tax, (e) value added tax, (f) national insurance contributions, (g) excise duties, (h) the council tax and its predecessors, (i) business rates and (j) other taxes, in each year between 1978 79 and 1994 95.
Mr. Nelson: The information requested is given in the table. Forecasts for 1994 95 are taken from the revised table 4A.1 of the 1995 96 "Financial Statement and Budget Report", issued with an HM Treasury press release on 8 December 1994.
General government receipts as a percentage of GDP<1> Receipt/financial |1978-79 |1979-80 |1980-81 |1981-82 |1982-83 |1983-84 |1984-85 |1985-86 |1986-87 year ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (a) Income tax<3> |11.0 |10.1 |10.4 |11.2 |10.8 |10.2 |10.0 |9.9 |10.0 (b) Corporation tax<4> |2.3 |2.3 |2.0 |1.9 |2.0 |2.0 |2.6 |3.0 |3.5 (c) Capital gains tax |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.3 |0.3 (d) Inheritance tax<5> |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.3 (e) Value added tax |2.8 |4.0 |4.7 |4.6 |4.9 |5.0 |5.7 |5.4 |5.6 (f) National Insurance contributions<6> |7.1 |7.2 |7.5 |7.7 |7.7 |7.5 |7.1 |6.8 |6.9 (g) Excise duties<7> |4.3 |3.9 |3.9 |4.4 |4.2 |4.4 |4.3 |4.2 |4.3 (h) Community charge/council tax |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- Rates<8> |3.4 |3.4 |3.7 |4.3 |4.3 |4.0 |4.0 |3.9 |4.1 (i) Business rates<9> |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- (j) Other GG receipts |7.5 |7.6 |8.1 |9.2 |9.3 |9.3 |9.4 |8.7 |6.7
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Receipt/financial |1987-88 |1988-89 |1989-90 |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94 |1994-95<2> year ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (a) Income tax<3> |9.7 |9.1 |9.4 |9.9 |9.9 |9.4 |9.1 |9.5 (b) Corporation tax<4> |3.7 |3.9 |4.2 |3.9 |3.1 |2.6 |2.3 |3.0 (c) Capital gains tax |0.3 |0.5 |0.4 |0.3 |0.2 |0.2 |0.1 |0.1 (d) Inheritance tax<5> |0.3 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 |0.2 (e) Value added tax |5.6 |5.7 |5.7 |5.6 |6.1 |6.2 |6.1 |6.4 (f) National Insurance contributions<6> |6.8 |6.8 |6.4 |6.4 |6.3 |6.2 |6.0 |6.3 (g) Excise duties<7> |3.9 |3.8 |3.5 |3.6 |3.8 |3.7 |3.8 |3.9 (h) Community charge/council tax |- |- |0.1 |1.9 |1.3 |1.4 |1.3 |1.3 Rates<8> |4.0 |4.1 |3.9 |- |- |- |- |- (i) Business rates<9> |- |- |- |2.2 |2.4 |2.3 |2.0 |1.8 (j) Other GG receipts |6.6 |6.1 |6.3 |5.3 |4.9 |4.7 |5.1 |4.8 <1> Money GDP adjusted for the abolition of domestic rates. <2> Forecasts published in the revised FSBR table 4A.1 in an HMT press release on 8 December 1994. <3> Includes surtax. <4> Includes advance corporation tax. <5> Includes residual receipts from estate duty and capital transfer tax. <6> Includes national insurance surcharge. <7> Fuel, alcohol and tobacco duties. <8> Includes Northern Ireland rates until 1990-91. <9> National non-domestic rates. Includes district council rates in Northern Ireland from 1990-91.
Treasury Model
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the cost of maintaining the Treasury model in terms of (a) direct staff costs and (b) other costs.
Mr. Nelson: The equivalent of around five full-time posts are currently devoted to economic model building and development. This staff requirement translates to a cost--including basic pay, national insurance and superannuation costs--of around £200,000 per year. It is very difficult to estimate the indirect costs involved, but these could add a further £100,000 per year if the costs of accommodation, senior management time, training and other items are taken into account.
Imports
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what forecast he has made of (a) the increase or decrease in the volume and value of imports of manufacturers in 1995 and the first half of 1996 and (b) the increase or decrease in United Kingdom output.
Mr. Nelson: The Treasury does not publish full forecasts of manufacturing trade flows. Forecasts of non-oil trade volumes and prices are shown in table 3.3 of the "Financial Statement and Budget Report", and forecasts of the balance of trade in manufactures in table 3.4. Forecasts of United Kingdom output are shown in tables 3.8 and 3.9.
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VAT (Steam Railways)
Mr. Allason: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to extend value added tax to steam railways.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: I have no plans to disturb the current VAT zero rating for public passenger transport, including steam railways, where the service is confined to that of public transport in its widely accepted sense. I can confirm that the proposed restrictions to the zero rating under the VAT (Transport) Order 1994 will not normally affect steam railways, and therefore most operators will be able to continue to apply the zero rate. The exception is when payment for admission to places such as theme or safari parks or working museums includes a steam engine ride. In these cases, where admission charges are apportioned or zero rated at present, they will become wholly liable to VAT at the standard rate.
Gilt-edged Securities
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much investment by overseas residents in gilt-edged securities has increased each year since 1990 and in the current year to date; and what assessment he has made of the effect of this investment on the rate of exchange.
Mr. Nelson: A sectoral breakdown of purchases of Government securities is given at table 10.2F of the Central Statistical Office's "Financial Statistics".
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Other things being equal, foreign purchases of United Kingdom gilts increase the exchange rate if sterling is acquired to effect the transaction. However, any impact is extremely difficult to quantify since a large number of factors affect the exchange rate.European Enlargement
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact of the enlargement of the EEC to include countries in eastern Europe on the budget contributions of (a) the United Kingdom and (b) the Mediterranean countries.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: The impact of accession to the EU by the countries of eastern Europe would depend on the circumstances under which that enlargement took place and on the extent to which Community policies were modified in advance of enlargement. The Government remain committed to further enlargement and to ensuring that it takes place on terms which are affordable to the Exchequer.
Current Account Deficits
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his assessment of the percentage overvaluation suggested by the current account deficits in 1989 and 1994.
Mr. Nelson: The size of the current account deficit is affected by a large number of factors, including world trade, growth in United Kingdom export markets, export profit margins, domestic demand and competitiveness. The United Kingdom is currently very competitive, as seen by our strong export performance; in the third quarter of 1994 export volumes, excluding oil and erratics, were up 14 per cent. on a year earlier.
EEC Imports
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the under-recording of imports from the EEC in (a) 1992 and (b) 1994.
Mr. Nelson: Prior to the introduction of the Intrastat system in January 1993, statistics on goods imported into the United Kingdom were based on customs documents. Various investigations had been carried out by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise and the Central Statistical Office into the quality of the statistics. These found that, although some errors were present in the information, they were small and the factors involved tended to offset each other, so that no correction to the data was thought necessary.
It was expected that such errors would also be present in the Intrastat system. As such, the system was designed to include a method of measuring the effect of these errors
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in recording. The data are gathered during audit visits to traders and the results are included in the article published in the August 1994 edition of "Economic Trends", containing the outcome of a review of the Intrastat system carried out by the Central Statistical Office and Her Majesty's Customs and Excise. These indicate that the value of imports from other European Union countries as reported in the overseas trade statistics publications is now under-estimated by 1.5 per cent.--around £85 million per month. The balance of payments statistics published by the Central Statistical Office include a correction to take this under-recording into account. This adjustment has been applied to data for 1993 and 1994 to date and will continue in the future, and as additional information becomes available it will be revised accordingly.It should also be borne in mind that the review established that there were miss-allocations between countries in the old system of recording--known as the "Rotterdam" effect--which caused total imports from other European Union countries to be overstated by an estimated £2,175 million in 1992, and imports from non-member countries to be understated by the same amount. This error in attribution is corrected by Intrastat.
Pre-tax Incomes
Mr. David Nicholson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 6 December, Official Report, column 122, if he will give the numbers of persons in the United Kingdom in 1973 and 1983 with pre-tax incomes of (a) more than £400,000 and (b) between £200,000 and £400,000 at 1992 93 values, using the deflator for average earnings.
Sir George Young: The table provides estimates of numbers of individuals for 1992 93, 1983 84 and1973 74
Pre-tax income range (adjusted for changes in average male earnings)
Thousands
|£200,000-£400,000|£400,000+
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1992-93 |16 |4
1983-84 |6 |1
1973-74 |11 |2
The income ranges used for 1983 84 and 1973 74 have been adjusted to take account of changes in average adult male earnings up to 1992 93.
Public Sector Borrowing Requirement
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish a revised version of table 4.1 in the "Financial Statement and Budget Report" 1995 96 following his announcement of 8 December.
Mr. Aitken: The information requested is shown.
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Revised FSBR Table 4.1-Public sector borrowing requirement<1>
Outturn Forecast Projection<2>
|1993-94 |1994-95 |1995-96 |1996-97 |1997-98 |1998-99 |1999-2000
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General government expenditure-£billion |277.5 |288.9 |301.8 |312 |323 |332 |341
General government receipts |230.8 |252.6 |278.7 |297 |315 |332 |349
General government borrowing requirement |46.7 |36.3 |23.1 |15 |7 |0 |-8
PCMOB<3> |-1.3 |-2.0 |-1.6 |-2 |-2 |-1 |-1
PSBR |45.4 |34.3 |21.5 |13 |5 |-1 |-9
Per cent. of money GDP General government expenditure |43.5 |42.5 |42 |41.25 |40.5 |39.75 |39.125
General government receipts |36 |37.25 |38.75 |39.5 |39.75 |39.75 |40
General government borrowing requirement |7.25 |5.25 |3.25 |2 |1 |0 |-1
PCMOB<3> |-0.25 |-0.25 |-0.25 |-0.25 |-0.25 |0 |0
PSBR |7 |5 |3 |1.75 |0.75 |0 |-1
Money GDP-£billion |639 |678 |719 |757 |795 |833 |872
<1> Constituent items may not sum to totals because of rounding.
<2> Projections are rounded to the nearest £1 billion from 1996-97 onwards.
<3> Public corporations' market and overseas borrowing.
Radcliffe Committee
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the conclusions of the Radcliffe committee on the working of the monetary system.
Mr. Nelson: The Radcliffe committee on the working of the monetary system reported in 1959. Its recommendations led to publication of the Bank of England "Quarterly Bulletin", December 1960, the collection of monetary statistics, and the publication of CSO "Financial Statistics". Articles covering the Radcliffe committee report can be found in Bank of England "Quarterly Bulletin" December 1969, page 448, and "Quarterly Bulletin" September 1985, page 392.
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Public Sector Debt
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what projections he has made of public sector debt.
Mr. Nelson: The information is set out in the table. This corrects an error in table 4.3 of the "Financial Statement and Budget Report". The new figures do not alter the broad picture for the public debt forecast. The debt-to-GDP ratio is still expected to peak at end March 1996, and to decline thereafter, on both the net public sector and gross general government measures. The projections for the rest of the public finances, including the fiscal deficit, PSBR and central Government debt interest are unaffected. The new figures therefore have no bearing on the Budget statement.
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|1995-96 |1996-97 |1997-98 |1998-99 |1999-2000
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net public sector debt<1>
£ billion<2> |308 |321 |327 |327 |319
per cent. of GDP<3> |41.5 |41.5 |40.25 |38.25 |35.75
Gross General government debt<1>
£ billion<2> |362 |377 |386 |387 |381
per cent. of GDP<3> |49 |48.5 |47.25 |45.25 |42.75
<1> At end-March.
<2> Rounded to the nearest £1 billion.
<3> GDP centred on end-March. Ratios for excessive deficits procedure use GDP for year
ending in March, which raises ratio by around 1.25 per cent.
Public Bodies
Dr. Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which of the advisory non-departmental public bodies sponsored by his Department (i) hold open meetings, (ii) conduct public consultation exercises, (iii) conduct consultation exercises with outside commercial interests, (iv) publish a register of members' interests (v) publish agendas for meetings and (vi) publish the minutes of meetings; and whether this is in each case (a) under a statutory requirement or (b) voluntary.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 16 December 1994]: Of the advisory non-departmental public bodies sponsored by the Treasury, the School Teachers Review Body, occasionally undertakes public consultation exercises on a voluntary basis.
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Banking Ombudsman
Mr. Tracey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of whether the terms of reference of the banking ombudsman adequately deal with complaints by non-customer third parties; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 19 December 1994]: The banking ombudsman is appointed by an independent council. His terms of reference are a matter for them, but I understand that the ombudsman does, from time to time, look at cases brought by non-customers.
Developing Countries (Debt)
Miss Lestor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list by country the total stock of existing and
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estimated debt outstanding to the United Kingdom by developing countries for each year from 1990 to 2000.Mr. Nelson [holding answer 6 December 1994]: The figures for ECGD are not readily available. To assemble them manually would incur disproportionate costs. Figures for outstanding debt stock as at 31 October 1994 are given. For the ODA figures, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to her by the hon. Member for Banbury (Mr. Baldry) on 8 December 1994, Official Report, columns 344 46.
£ million
ECGD |Outstanding debt
|stock as at 31
-------------------------------------------------------
Africa
Algeria |71.12
Angola |56.97
Benin |3.83
Burkina Faso |1.94
Cameroon |62.81
CAR |0.25
Congo |106.96
Cote d'Ivoire |30.25
Egypt |368.64
Ethiopia |9.76
Gabon |121.93
Gambia |2.36
Ghana |9.04
Guinea Rep |5.00
Kenya |60.12
Liberia |6.64
Madagascar |18.14
Malawi |0.72
Mali |11.40
Mauritania |7.50
Morocco |121.79
Mozambique |76.49
Niger |10.06
Nigeria |2,304.30
Senegal |2.38
Sierra Leone |3.62
Somalia |16.22
Sudan |168.31
Tanzania |163.31
Togo |13.22
Uganda |25.33
Zaire |80.03
Zambia |256.71
Americas
Argentina |142.29
Bolivia |41.47
Brazil |872.98
Chile |0.06
Costa Rica |1.73
Cuba |28.55
Ecuador |61.73
Guyana |116.97
Jamaica |4.30
Mexico |195.16
Nicaragua |0.91
Peru |124.61
Trinidad and Tobago |12.24
Asia and Middle East
Indonesia |3.55
Philippines |62.69
Vietnam |10.39
Jordan |365.21
Miss Lestor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list by country the total amounts of existing and estimated debt service being paid to the United Kingdom by developing countries for each year from 1990 to 2000.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 6 December 1994]: Schedules of debt service payments by developing countries to the ODA and ECGD each year since 1990 91 are given. Estimates to the year 2000 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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ECGD debt service payments 1990-91-31 October 1994
£ million
Country |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94 |1994-31 October 1994
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Africa
Algeria |- |- |- |- |-
Angola |5.01 |- |- |- |-
Benin |- |- |0.32 |0.13 |0.23
Burkina Faso |- |- |0.37 |0.09 |0.20
Cameroon |- |0.17 |0.38 |- |0.5
CAR |- |- |- |- |-
Congo |1.43 |- |- |- |0.47
Cote d'Ivoire |- |- |0.12 |0.01 |-
Egypt |11.84 |0.29 |34.86 |17.52 |6.80
Ethiopia |- |- |- |0.07 |0.12
Gabon |- |7.50 |6.04 |- |-
Gambia |1.00 |1.73 |2.15 |1.47 |1.56
Ghana |1.75 |1.71 |1.68 |1.64 |0.81
Guinea Republic |0.65 |2.98 |0.33 |0.21 |0.12
Kenya |- |- |- |- |2.56
Liberia |- |- |- |- |-
Madagascar |1.70 |0.64 |- |- |-
Malawi |0.69 |0.52 |0.23 |0.05 |-
Mali |0.92 |0.45 |0.94 |- |2.23
Mauritania |0.64 |0.15 |- |0.61 |0.08
Morocco |4.71 |11.14 |18.15 |19.07 |14.46
Mozambique |1.74 |2.98 |2.18 |0.23 |0.13
Niger |- |- |- |- |-
Nigeria |252.01 |236.98 |86.25 |16.75 |-
Senegal |0.15 |0.32 |- |- |-
Sierra Leone |- |- |- |0.46 |0.04
Somalia |- |- |- |- |-
Sudan |- |- |- |- |-
Tanzania |2.53 |1.27 |5.13 |4.29 |1.58
Togo |1.07 |0.43 |- |- |-
Uganda |0.28 |0.07 |- |0.34 |0.21
Zaire |1.27 |- |- |- |-
Zambia |- |5.41 |- |7.61 |-
Americas
Argentina |38.23 |5.91 |7.56 |6.14 |3.32
Bolivia |0.19 |0.63 |0.08 |0.64 |0.49
Brazil |- |- |120.99 |120.63 |49.95
Chile |0.19 |- |0.23 |0.12 |0.06
Costa Rica |0.36 |0.12 |0.11 |0.59 |-
Cuba |- |- |- |- |-
Ecuador |4.09 |3.15 |5.41 |- |1.55
Guyana |- |- |2.18 |0.73 |0.37
Jamaica |0.96 |- |0.89 |0.20 |0.13
Mexico |2.21 |- |18.77 |13.60 |10.39
Nicaragua |- |- |- |0.13 |0.04
Peru |- |- |0.91 |- |0.25
Trinidad and Tobago |0.80 |0.89 |0.79 |0.95 |0.47
Asia and Middle East
Indonesia |0.42 |- |0.52 |0.51 |-
Philippines |4.57 |1.54 |0.83 |8.54 |7.57
Vietnam |- |- |- |- | -
Jordan |- |- |26.75 |5.17 |0.10
ODA debt service payments 1990-91-31 October 1994 £ thousand Country |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94 |1994-31 October 1994 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Antigua and Barbuda |103 |0 |0 |0 |0 Barbados |67 |65 |63 |60 |32 Belize |629 |957 |936 |928 |1,123 Bolivia |22 |0 |0 |0 |0 Brazil |0 |0 |213 |0 |0 British Virgin Islands |6 |6 |6 |6 |0 Cayman Islands |95 |95 |65 |65 |34 Colombia |325 |318 |310 |303 |149 Costa Rica |240 |192 |295 |1,040 |0 Cyprus |23 |20 |20 |20 |10 Dominica |139 |139 |278 |132 |270 Ecuador |0 |0 |316 |0 |395 Falkland Islands |22 |22 |22 |22 |19 Fiji |316 |304 |292 |280 |268 Gibraltar |141 |133 |129 |107 |39 Grenada |320 |285 |0 |628 |341 Guyana |3,068 |3,068 |24 |58 |0 India |26,794 |35,255 |22,994 |21,212 |11,440 Ivory Coast |0 |0 |0 |0 |255 Jamaica |2,716 |3,453 |1,909 |1,539 |1,099 Jordan |0 |1,029 |391 |0 |0 Malaysia |1,667 |1,204 |1,629 |2,055 |798 Malta |122 |75 |11 |0 |0 Mauritius |1,274 |1,168 |1,105 |1,00 |462 Nigeria |132 |7 |0 |0 |0 Paraguay |0 |235 |586 |235 |117 Philippines |0 |0 |0 |416 |538 Seychelles |296 |1,248 |760 |747 |367 Singapore |1,042 |1,042 |1,042 |1,042 |1,042 Solomon Islands |7 |7 |3 |10 |142 St. Kitts-Nevis |94 |94 |94 |94 |47 St. Lucia |0 |333 |167 |333 |333 St. Vincent |0 |0 |263 |263 |132 Swaziland |1,079 |858 |1,211 |1,002 |507 Thailand |78 |230 |150 |147 |70 Tonga |153 |148 |146 |143 |71 Tunisia |46 |44 |45 |45 |22 Trinidad and Tobago |31 |0 |0 |0 |0 Turkey |10,218 |8,396 |7,718 |6,905 |3,145 Vanuatu |19 |18 |18 |9 |17 Zimbabwe |1,686 |1,748 |1,730 |1,710 |847
Special Advisers
Mr. Milburn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which of the special advisers serving in his Departments during the last five years were subject to positive security vetting.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 13 December 1994]: All the special advisers in the Treasury during the past five years have been subject to positive vetting.
Clubs and Public Houses
Mrs. Ewing: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the legislation which differentiates between private licensed clubs and public houses in respect of licences issued for the use of pool tables, juke boxes and one-armed bandits; and if he will list the licence fee applicable in each case, and the legal pay-out applicable for one-armed bandits in (a) registered private clubs and (b) public premises.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory [holding answer 19 December 1994]: The legislation which covers the licensing of gaming machines on any premises is the Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981. Gaming machine licence duty is to be replaced on 1 November 1995 with amusement machine licence duty, which will include machines which did not previously require a licence. These will include certain prize machines, video games and quiz machines.
The licence fee for non-prize machines will be £250 for a full year.
Pool tables and juke boxes do not require a licence under the current duty, and will not require one when amusement machine licence duty comes into force. The current licence fee payable on one-armed bandits gaming machines depends upon the cost to play the machine once and the amount of the prize that can be won.
Gaming machines--small prize machines-- where the payout cannot exceed £6 in money or money's worth and which cost 5p or less to play once do not require a licence.
Gaming machines--small prize machines-- where the payout cannot exceed £6 in money or money's work and which cost more than 5p to play once require a licence costing £535 for a full year. Gaming machines-- jackpot machines--which pay out more than £6 in money or money's worth and which cost 5p to play once require a licence costing £535 for a full year.
Gaming machines--jackpot machines--which pay out more than £6 in money or money's worth and which cost more than 5p to play once require a licence costing £1,375 for a full year.
Customs and Excise is not responsible for the legislation on the siting of gaming machines. This is governed by the social law and is a matter for the Home Secretary.
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