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Retail Prices Index
Mr. Ainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if pensioner households mainly dependent on state benefits are included in the calculation of weights which form the basis of the retail prices index. [41011]
Mrs. Angela Knight: Pensioner households mainly dependent on state benefits are not included in the calculation of the weights used in the retail prices index.
The retail prices index excludes pensioners deriving at least three-quarters of their income from state pensions and benefits. Pensioners are excluded as their spending patterns differ significantly from those of a typical household. However, the Office for National Statistics does compile pensioner price indices to cover these households on a quarterly basis.
Details of the weights used are published each year in the retail prices index "Business Monitor", MM23. An article explaining how the weights were calculated for 1996 was published in the February 1996 issue which is available from the House of Commons Library.
Mr. Frank Field:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the full text of the Treasury guideline mentioned in paragraph 13 of Cm 2948, which requires that when any Government Department is considering policy it considers the resource implications for other Departments. [41215]
Mr. Waldegave:
I cannot answer substantively before Parliament is prorogued. I will, however, write to the hon. Member.
Mr. Tipping:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the most recent estimate he has received of the loss of excise duty through smuggling (a) alcohol and (b) tobacco. [41219]
Mr. Oppenheim:
Customs and Excise published estimates of revenue evasion through smuggling on 19 September. The actual loss to the Exchequer will be less than the amount of revenue evaded, as some smuggling is likely to represent additional consumption, rather than substituting for similar goods bought in the UK. Customs' estimates for the annual revenue--excise duty and VAT--evaded are (a) £210 million for alcohol and (b) £560 million for tobacco products. This amount represents less than 5 per cent. of the annual total excise duty and VAT collected on alcohol and tobacco. These figures do not include amounts for commercial fraud--where revenue is evaded by use of false documentation.
17 Oct 1996 : Column: 1115
Mr. Nicholas Baker:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has any plans to introduce tax relief on the whole or part of payments by patients in registered nursing homes of their fees. [41198]
Mr. Jack:
I cannot answer substantively before Parliament is prorogued. I will, however, write to my hon. Friend.
Mr. Battle:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what capacity of electricity used in his Department's buildings is generated in a combined heat and power plant; and what plans he has to increase that capacity.[41311]
Mrs. Angela Knight:
I cannot answer substantively before Parliament is prorogued. I will, however, write to the hon. Member.
Mr. David Atkinson:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to introduce tax concessions to smaller landlords to improve their properties following the new conditions arising from the Housing Act 1996; and if he will make a statement. [41331]
Mr. Jack:
I cannot answer substantively before Parliament is prorogued. I will, however, write to my hon. Friend.
Mr. Foulkes:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the amount of revenue lost by the Exchequer due to the facilities provided for (a) individual United Kingdom citizens and (b) companies operating in the United Kingdom on each of (i) Jersey, (ii) Guernsey, (iii) the Isle of Man, (iv) Gibraltar, (v) the British Virgin Islands, (vi) the Cayman Islands and (vii) other overseas United Kingdom dependent territories; what measures have been considered to recover such lost revenue; and if he will make a statement.[41244]
Mr. Jack:
I cannot answer substantively before Parliament is prorogued. I will, however, write to the hon. Member.
Mr. Timms:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much capital spending by (i) the private sector and (ii) the public sector in the current financial year (a) he projected at the time of the 1995 Budget and (b) he projects now in respect of projects under the private finance initiative; [41337]
Mr. Jack:
I cannot answer substantively before Parliament is prorogued. I will, however, write to the hon. Member.
17 Oct 1996 : Column: 1116(2) how much capital spending has so far been committed by (i) the private sector and (ii) the public sector for the current financial year in respect of projects under the private finance initiative. [41338]
Contracts
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the number, nature and value of contracts awarded by his Department to Coopers and Lybrand, KPMG, Price Waterhouse, Ernst and Young, Deloitte and Touche, Arthur Andersen, Grant Thornton, BDO Stoy Hayward, Pannel Kerr Forster, and Robson Rhodes and their subsidiaries and associates, during 1995 and 1996. [37317]
Mr. Boswell: During the financial year 1995-96, my Department entered into two contracts with Deloitte Touche, both in connection with the Department's data communications strategy study, at a total cost of £130,988. One contract with BDO Stoy Hayward dealt with the monitoring of Dairy Crest activities for 1993-94 and April-October 1995, and one contract with Ernst and Young was concerned with the implementation of the Ministry's resource accounting and management information system. For reasons of commercial confidentiality, I cannot disclose the value of these two contracts. There were no contracts with the other companies named in the question.
ADAS employed the services of KPMG for a benchmarking seminar, Price Waterhouse for a privatisation feasibility project and Grant Thornton for VAT advice. The aggregate value of these three contracts was £7,002.
The Veterinary Laboratories Agency spent £18,689.35 in the calendar year 1995 with Price Waterhouse. This was all for merger-associated work including strategy development for the new agency. No other contracts were entered into with the organisations named in the period referred to.
I have asked the chief executive of Central Science Laboratory to provide a separate reply in respect of his use of the consultancy firms concerned.
Letter from P. I. Stanley to Mr. Austin Mitchell, dated 16 October 1996:
The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has asked me to reply to your question about contracts awarded to given companies and their subsidiaries and associates during the financial year 1995/96, as this is an operational matter for which I am responsible.[37317]
Mr. Corbyn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what has been the total sum spent on emergency relief in Montserrat in the last year; and if he will make a statement on forthcoming assistance in the next six months. [40845]
Dr. Fox:
Since July 1995, when the volcanic emergency on Montserrat began, we have committed £8.5 million on a wide variety of projects, many of which are ongoing.
17 Oct 1996 : Column: 1117
During the year in question two contracts totalling £6147 in value were awarded to Price Waterhouse for work involving a Review of Future Management and a Team Building Workshop. No contracts were awarded to any of the other companies listed.
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