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Customs and Excise
Mr. Matthew Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will announce the results of the review by HM Customs and Excise of its next steps arrangements.[41232]
Mr. Oppenheim: Customs and Excise has been operating along next steps lines since 1991 when the bulk of the Department's operational staff were organised into executive units.
The Department currently has 24 executive units; 14 collections, national investigation service, national intelligence division, solicitor's office and seven other central operations or service units which together employ some 95 per cent. of their staff.
The Department and each executive unit has a framework document which contains statements of responsibilities and accountabilities. The review of its organisation and the impact of next steps clearly demonstrates that Customs and Excise continues to be fully committed to next steps principles. The outcome of the review is the publication today of the revised departmental document "HM Customs and Excise: Next Steps Framework Document 1996", copies of which have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
Executive unit framework documents will be published before the House rises for the Christmas recess.
Mr. Timms:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the use of the general Government financial deficit as the principal measure of public debt. [40336]
Mr. Waldegrave:
The general Government financial deficit is a national accounts measure of the deficit on the Government's current and capital accounts. As a national accounts measure, the GGFD follows internationally recognised guidelines, allowing international comparisons of government deficits. Partly for this reason, it was chosen as the deficits measure in the excessive deficit procedure set out in the Maastricht treaty. But most countries also use their own measure of the deficit when presenting their Budgets. The UK focuses on the public sector borrowing requirement as it is a measure of the net cash demand of the whole of the public sector on the rest
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of the economy. In addition, monthly PSBR figures are available about two weeks after the end of the period to which they relate, whereas the GGFD is available only quarterly and about three months after the end of the quarter. Forecasts of both are given in the "Financial Statement and Budget Report".
Mr. Spearing:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what sums were (a) paid to and (b) received from public funds in (i) telephone and electronic communications, (ii) gas, (iii) electricity, (iv) public water services and (v) Royal Mail, for the year of and five years preceding the year of their disposal or 1995 as appropriate; and if he will make a statement. [40412]
Mr. Jack
[holding answer 14 October 1996]: I refer the hon. Member to the following documents, which set out the information available for each industry. Figures for external financing requirements can be found in "Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 1996-97" and its predecessor publications; including the "Statistical Supplement to the FSBR" and "Government Expenditure Plans". The EFR measures the difference between what an industry spends and the income from its trading and related activities; the most significant components of external finance are normally Government grants, subsidies and loans, and movements in deposits--which are normally liabilities of the public sector.
Figures for interest payments from the industries to the national loans fund are quoted in the "Consolidated Fund and National Loans Fund Accounts".
Tax and dividend figures for all nationalised industries are available in "Inland Revenue Statistics" and the Office for National Statistics' Blue Book respectively; however, this information is not broken down on an industry-by-industry basis.
Mr. Gapes:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what steps his Department has taken to investigate the volume of United Kingdom bonds issued on the Swiss market which have subsequently been deemed to be defunct or in default; if he will list the United Kingdom banks and other financial institutions which have been approached to participate in such investigations; and what action his Department has taken; [40150]
Mrs. Angela Knight:
None that I am aware of.
Mr. Spearing:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the title and authorship of the documents used by Governments of the member states by the European Union in concluding that the percentage of public sector borrowing and debt as a proportion of gross national product should be those specified in the treaty of union, Maastricht. [40363]
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Mr. Waldegrave:
The Council, meeting in the form of Heads of State or Government, in accordance with article 109j of the EC treaty, will assess which countries fulfil the necessary conditions for the adoption of the single currency. In doing so, the Council will take account of reports prepared for this meeting by the Commission and the European Monetary Institute. Sound public finances, as detailed in article 104c of the treaty and in protocol No. 5 on the excessive deficit procedure, will form an important part of the assessment.
Mr. Chidgey:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential economic benefits deriving from environmental improvements of (a) City diesel and (b) oxygenated fuel; and what consideration he has given to the introduction of fiscal incentives to encourage their use. [40716]
Mr. Oppenheim:
We keep the potential economic and environmental benefits of City diesel and oxygenated fuel under review. The Government do consider, where appropriate, the use of fiscal incentives to promote practices which are environmentally and economically beneficial, but each case is looked at on its merits.
Mr. Galbraith:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to review the road fund licence exemption to allow variable concessions; and if he will make a statement. [40777]
Mr. Oppenheim:
We keep under review the vehicle excise duty concessions and exemptions. Any statement on this will be made in the Budget.
Mr. Galbraith:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has had concerning equalising the tax on Scotch whisky with that of other alcoholic drinks; and if he will make a statement. [40769]
Mr. Oppenheim:
The Chancellor of the Exchequer has received representations from the Scotch Whisky Association and the Wine and Spirit Association of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Other interested groups and individuals have written or made representation through Members of Parliament to the Chancellor and other Treasury Ministers.
Each year, prior to making his Budget decisions, the Chancellor of the Exchequer reviews the levels of taxation on alcoholic beverages including spirits. consideration is given to a wide range of social, economic and health factors as well as the revenue effect. Any statement on this will be made in the Budget.
Mr. Redmond:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many abortions have been performed in total to women usually resident in the Trent region under the provisions of the Abortion Act 1967; and how many and what percentage of these abortions were performed in emergency to save the life of the mother. [40820]
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Mrs. Angela Knight:
The total number of abortions performed under the Abortion Act, to women usually resident in the Trent health region 1 from 1970 to 1994 2 was 245,489. During this period, nine abortions, 0.004 per cent. of the total number of abortions performed, were carried out in an emergency, certified by the operating practitioner as immediately necessary, to save the life of the woman 3 .
Mrs. Knight:
The latest year for which abortion data by gestation of the pregnancy are available for women usually resident in the Trent health region is 1994. The data are presented in table 21 of the 1994 abortion statistics, series AB No. 21, HMSO publication 1996.
Comparable figures for each of the last four years, 1990 to 1993 inclusive, are available in table 24b (1990, 1991) and 24c (1992, 1993) in the following publications: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, abortion statistics, England and Wales, series AB Nos. 17 to 21 respectively; HMSO publications 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996 respectively.
Mr. Redmond:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give a breakdown by the procedure adopted of the number of abortions performed on women usually resident in the Trent region in the latest year for which he has figures; and what were the comparable figures for each of the last four years. [400874]
Mrs. Knight:
The latest year for which abortion data by procedure are available for women usually resident in the Trent health region is 1994. The data are presented in table 18 of 1994 abortion statistics, series AB No. 21, HMSO publication 1996.
Comparable figures for each of the last four years, 1990 to 1993 inclusive, are available in table 22, in the following publications: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 abortion statistics, England and Wales, series AB Nos. 17 to 21 respectively; HMSO publications 1991, 1993, 1995, 1995, 1996 respectively.
Mr. Redmond:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give a breakdown by age of the mother of abortions carried out on women usually resident in the Trent region in each of the last five years. [40833]
Mrs. Knight:
A breakdown of legal terminations by age of mother usually resident in the Trent health region, for the years 1990 to 1994 inclusive are available in the following publications: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994 abortion statistics, England and Wales, series AB Nos. 17 to 21 respectively; HMSO publications 1991, 1993, 1995, 1995, 1996 respectively.
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(2) if he will list those United Kingdom bonds issued on the Swiss market since 1987 which have subsequently been deemed by (a) his Department and (b) the Swiss authorities to be (i) defunct and (ii) in default, indicating the approximate value of each bond and all such bonds. [40151]
Mr. Redmond:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give a breakdown by gestation of the pregnancy of the abortions performed on women usually resident in the Trent region in the last year for which figures are available; and what were the comparable figures for each of the previous four years. [40821]
1 Figures are based, where possible, on 1994 health authority boundaries. Other boundary changes have not been reflected in the figures.
2 Figures for 1968-69 are not held on a comparable basis.
3 Abortions performed under statutory grounds 5 (1970-31 March 1991) and F (1 April-present day) that is, where in the case of emergency it was necessary to save the life of the woman.
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