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DUCHY OF LANCASTER
Private Finance Initiative
Mr. Betts: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how much capital expenditure is forecast to be included in the private finance initiative for the current financial year and the next five financial years. [3838]
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Mr. Willetts: The Government's metropolitan telecommunications service is already largely provided by the private sector, which owns much of the infrastructure. The Office of Public Service hopes to involve private finance further in the provision of the software used by Government Departments. This could involve capital expenditure of some £1.5 million in 1996-97.
Mr. Betts: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list for each scheme so far agreed under the private finance initiative (a) capital and (b) revenue costs to public funds (i) under the PFI and (ii) estimated to have been incurred had the scheme been funded wholly within the public sector. [3804]
Mr. Willetts: The Cabinet Office--including the Office of Public Service--HMSO and the Central Office of Information have not yet approved any schemes under the private finance initiative.
Photocopiers
Mr. Nigel Griffiths: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many new photocopiers his Department has (a) purchased and (b) leased since July 1995; and at what cost. [4291]
Mr. Willetts: Since 1 July 1995 the Cabinet Office and its agencies have purchased one additional photocopier at a cost of £895 and leased 18 photocopiers, 11 of which replaced existing machines, at a rental cost £50,799 per annum.
In the same period, HMSO and the Central Office of Information purchased four photocopiers, two of which replaced existing machines, at a cost of £17,817 and leased 14 to replace existing machines at a rental cost of £31,570 per annum.
Citizens Charter
Mr. Butler: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which bodies are covered by the citizens charter. [4855]
Mr. Freeman: The citizens charter applies to all public sector bodies and privatised regulated utilities where there is an element of monopoly.
The Director General of Telecommunications is charged with a statutory duty to promote the interests of consumers. The Director General has advised me that a genuinely competitive market is developing for telecommunications. For these reasons, I no longer regard BT as falling within the scope of the charter programme.
TREASURY
Employment (East Midlands)
Mr. Tipping: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the total number of (a) full-time and part-time jobs and (b) full-time and part-time temporary jobs in the east midlands region, together with a breakdown of occupations. [4071]
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Mrs. Angela Knight: The latest available information is shown in the following table.
| Occupation | Full-time | Part-time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Not permanent | All | Not permanent | |
| Managers and administrators | 221 | (5)-- | 20 | (5)-- |
| Professional occupations | 120 | (5)-- | 24 | 11 |
| Associate professor and technical occupations | 114 | (5)-- | 26 | (5)-- |
| Clerical, secretarial occupations | 178 | 12 | 70 | (5)-- |
| Craft and related occupations | 208 | (5)-- | 12 | (5)-- |
| Personal protective occupations | 83 | (5)-- | 82 | (5)-- |
| Sales occupations | 67 | (5)-- | 74 | (5)-- |
| Plant and machine operatives | 185 | 10 | 22 | (5)-- |
| Other occupations | 66 | (5)-- | 79 | (5)-- |
| Total | 1,243 | 48 | 409 | 48 |
(4) Not seasonally adjusted.
(5) -- denotes less than 10,000 in cell.
Private Finance Initiative
Mr. Betts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much capital expenditure is forecast to be included in the private finance initiative for the current financial year and the next five financial years. [3835]
Mr. Jack: I refer the hon. Member to table 6.5 of the "Financial Statement and Budget Report 1996-97", and, which has been laid before Parliament on 28 November 1995.
Mr. Betts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list for each scheme so far agreed under the private finance initiative (a) capital and (b) revenue costs to public funds (i) under the PFI and (ii) estimated to have been incurred had the scheme been funded wholly within the public sector. [3807]
Mr. Jack: PFI payments are for service delivery, not capital procurement. They comprise a mixture of charges for capital and revenue. Value for money is ensured through the competitive process. It is not always commercially appropriate to disclose a public sector comparator, nor to place undue reliance on illustrative
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calculations. Guidance on public sector comparators is contained in the publication "Private Opportunity, Public Benefit", a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House.
Small and Medium Enterprises
Mrs. Roche: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish the guidance his Department issues to each Government department and agency regarding procurement from SMEs. [3928]
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: The following guidance has been issued:
"Size may be relevant to the selection of tenderers, but only insofar as it is necessary to assess whether or not the job is within their capability. Once that assessment has been made, relative size is likely to be less significant than skills, efficiency, experience and reliability-- characteristics relevant to value for money but just as likely to be found in small firms as in large and particularly relevant in the procurement of services."
Fuel Duty
Ms Primarolo: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Eltham, (Mr. Bottomley) of 28 November, Official Report, column 537, on fuels, if he will give the same figures updated to account for the Budget measures; and if he will list the figures for natural gas used as a road fuel, (a) before and (b) after the Budget. [4061]
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: The following updated figures are based on the pre-Budget average retail selling prices adjusted to reflect the actual duty changes announced in my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor's Budget statement:
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| RSP p/litre | Total tax as percentage of RSP | Excise duty as percentage of RSP | VAT as percentage of RSP | Excise duty p/litre | VAT p/litre | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leaded | 61.29 | 78.72 | 63.83 | 14.89 | 39.12 | 9.13 |
| Super unleaded | 62.02 | 70.20 | 55.30 | 14.89 | 34.30 | 9.24 |
| Unleaded | 55.06 | 77.19 | 62.30 | 14.89 | 34.30 | 8.20 |
| Diesel | 55.51 | 76.68 | 61.79 | 14.89 | 34.30 | 8.27 |
| City diesel | 54.9 | 77.37 | 62.48 | 14.89 | 34.30 | 8.18 |
| LPG auto | 39.1 | 50.93 | 36.04 | 14.89 | 14.09 | 5.82 |
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| Compressed natural gas (CNG) | RSP p/kilo | Total tax as percentage of RSP | Excise duty as percentage of RSP | VAT as percentage of RSP | Excise duty p/kilo | VAT p/kilo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Budget | 56.4 | 73.65 | 58.76 | 14.89 | 33.14 | 8.40 |
| Post-Budget | 56.4 | 64.84 | 49.95 | 14.89 | 28.17 | 8.40 |
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Ministerial Visits
Mr. Donohoe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many ministerial visits have been undertaken by each Minister in his Department between 6 July and 1 December; and how many and what percentage of these have involved the Minister travelling abroad. [4221]
Mr. Kenneth Clarke: I have made seven ministerial visits, all of which were abroad.
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