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VAT (Domestic Fuel)
16. Mrs. Fyfe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the income from VAT on domestic fuel for 1996-97. [4872]
Mr. Oppenheim: The income from VAT on domestic fuel and power for the 12 months to June 1996 is estimated to be of the order of £1.1 billion. The outturn for 1996-97 will be affected by factors such as the weather, but is expected to be of a similar magnitude.
Building Societies
17. Mr. Tipping: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he proposes to introduce further legislation about building societies. [4873]
Mrs. Angela Knight: I plan to publish a draft Building Societies Bill later this year. It will be introduced when a suitable opportunity arises.
Investment
18. Ms Quin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what effect his recent Budget will have on investment in the United Kingdom. [4874]
Mr. Jack: This Budget creates a healthy environment for investment and growth. It builds on an already strong economy by reducing tax rates, but without jeopardising stability.
Private Finance Initiative
19. Sir Roger Moate: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the progress of the private finance initiative. [4875]
Mr. Jack: The PFI is going from strength to strength. As of last month, £7,000 million of agreed PFI deals have been done, with deals in almost every area of the public sector. The Treasury has forged an alliance with the Confederation of British Industry to speed up the PFI deal flow and we are working with the private sector to train practitioners on the front line, including over 2,500 officials already trained or booked on the "PFI in Practice" course. And at last month's private finance panel annual conference, we launched four new guidances, including the first set of standard terms and conditions for PFI contracts.
Interest Rates
20. Mr. Wareing: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on future interest rates policy. [4876]
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Mrs. Angela Knight: Interest rates are set to continue to achieve permanently low inflation. Over the last four years, the inflation performance of the economy has been the best for nearly half a century and the prospects are excellent.
26. Mr. Pawsey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the current interest rate in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) France, Germany and the United States. [4884]
Mrs. Knight: UK interest rates are set to continue to achieve permanently low inflation. International comparisons of data on interest rates can be found in the OECD's main economic indicators.
UK Competitiveness
22. Mr. Duncan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact of the measures proposed in his Budget statement on the United Kingdom's competitive position within the European Union. [4878]
Mrs. Angela Knight: The Budget will help us build upon our position as the enterprise centre of Europe.
Direct Taxation
23. Mr. Dykes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the public response to the direct taxation changes in his Budget proposals announced on 26 November. [4880]
Mr. Jack: All income taxpayers--around 26 million people--gain from the Budget proposals. Real increases in personal allowances and the lower rate band help the low paid. Over a quarter of all taxpayers now pay tax at only 20p. All other taxpayers benefit from the 1p cut in the basic rate, which at 23p is the lowest headline rate of income tax for 60 years. In addition, the increase in the inheritance tax threshold allows people to build up wealth and security for their families and for future generations.
Value Added Tax
24. Mr. Kevin Hughes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the amount of VAT collected in the last year for which figures are available. [4881]
Mr. Oppenheim: The amount of VAT collected in financial year 1995-96 was £43,069 million.
Tobacco Duty
25. Mr. Steen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on tobacco duty. [4882]
Mr. Oppenheim: I refer my hon. Friend to my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Budget Statement.
Exchange Rates
27. Sir David Knox: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about the effect on the economy of fluctuating exchange rates. [4885]
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Mrs. Angela Knight: The Government recognise the value of a stable exchange rate but do not have a target for sterling. The exchange rate is only one of many factors that has to be taken account of in policy decisions.
Capital Investment
Mrs. Jane Kennedy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on fiscal incentives to encourage capital investment in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries, and on the levels achieved in each case in the last three financial years. [4877]
Mr. Jack: The Government believe that the best way to encourage capital investment in the UK is by low taxation, low inflation and stable economic policies, not by fiscal incentives. The Government have achieved considerable success in improving the climate for investment by reforming the corporation tax system to bring capital allowances more into line with actual depreciation and by cutting the rate of corporation tax from 52 per cent. to 33 per cent. The level of business investment in the UK as a proportion of GDP is comparable with our major competitors and it is now higher than in the 1970s. International statistics of business investment are available in the OECD business sector database.
Information and Publicity (Consultants)
Ms Hodge: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was his Department's expenditure on consultants to assist with information, publicity, press and media in (a) 1995-96, (b) 1994-95 and (c) 1993-94. [3579]
Information and Publicity (Staff)
Ms Hodge: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the cost of staff employed full-time or part-time (i) to provide information and publicity and (ii) to work in press or media in (a) 1995-96, (b) 1994-95 and (c) 1993-94. [3568]
Mrs. Angela Knight: The information is as follows:
| 1995-96 | 1994-95 | 1993-94 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| (£) | (£) | (£) | |
| Press office/public inquiry unit | 416,944 | 406,040 | 406,292 |
| Publishing unit | 91,805 | 82,330 | 47,673 |
| Total | 508,749 | 488,370 | 453,965 |
Computers
Mr. Hoon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many lines of computer code there are in his Department's computer systems. [5511]
Mr. Jack: The Treasury uses a number of proprietary software packages and for these, information on the number of lines of source code is known only to the supplier. An inventory of bespoke software is being
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undertaken as part of the Treasury's strategy for dealing with the year 2000 date issue, but the compilation of this inventory is not yet complete.
For programs written by Treasury staff we estimate that there are at present 75,000 lines of code.
There may be a further 100,000 lines contained in programs produced for the Treasury by external suppliers. For most of these programs, the Treasury has no access to the code or has no commitment to maintain them.
We have no information as to how many lines of code are contained in proprietary software such as operating systems, databases or PC packages.
Mr. Hoon:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many separate computer programs his Department operates. [5510]
Mr. Jack:
There is no universal definition of what constitutes a computer program. A formula or a simple line of executable code could be said to be a program; however my Department is at present responsible for the following list of major software systems:
| Source | Category | Number of full programs | Number of modules/ components |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary | Systems software | 25 | -- |
| General central server software | 24 | -- | |
| Office systems | 24 | -- | |
| PARLY.CLERK /packages | 32 | -- | |
| Total | 105 | -- | |
| Bespoke (external) | Total | 16 | 325 |
| In-house | Total | 11 | 1,166 |
| Total | Total | 132 | 1,491 |
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