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Royal Ulster Constabulary (Complaints)

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he hopes to (a) receive and (b) publish the Hayes review of the arrangements for handling and investigating complaints against the RUC.[5327]

Sir John Wheeler: I expect to receive the report into the police complaints system by Maurice Hayes next month. It will be published shortly thereafter.

Claimant Count Figures

Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people left the claimant count

2 Dec 1996 : Column: 514

figures in the year to September 1996; and by how many the number of people in work changed in that time. [6392]

Mr. Ancram: Over the year to September 1996, 101,014 claimants left the unemployment count. Figures showing how the people in work changed over the same time period are not yet available.

Young Offenders

Ms Mowlam: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of 18-year-old offenders was unemployed on the date of sentence in each of the last five years. [6926]

Sir John Wheeler [holding answer 29 November 1996]: Information on the employment status of offenders is not routinely collected and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

2 Dec 1996 : Column: 515

TREASURY

Shares (Taxation)

Mr. Pearson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the Exchequer in (a) the 1995-96 financial year and (b) from 6 April to 8 October 1996 from the tax abuse of share buybacks and special dividends; and if he will make a copy of the calculations available in the Library; [3098]

(2) if he will place in the Library the basis for, and calculations behind, the statement in the Inland Revenue press release of 8 October that the changes in respect of share buybacks and special dividends will produce an estimated yield of £80 million in 1996-97, £200 million in 1997-98 and £400 million for 1998-99 onwards. [3099]

Mr. Jack: Estimates of the revenue effects of restricting the payment of tax credits in respect of share buybacks and certain special dividends, as announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 8 October, were prepared on the following basis and assumptions:

(a) That with no change in tax treatment, the level of relevant distributions would have been £4 billion annually, with associated tax credits of £1 billion; of these credits, £700 million would have been paid to exempt institutions.

(b) With the change in tax treatment, relevant distributions would fall by £1 billion (with this money retrained by companies or distributed without attracting tax credits). The remaining £3 billion would be paid as dividends not falling within the restrictions announced on 8 October 1996, with tax credits of £750 million, of which £300 million would be paid to exempt institutions.

(c) The impact of the changes on tax revenues would be:

(i) receipts of advanced corporation tax (ACT) would fall by £20 million in 1996-97 and £250 million a year starting 1997-98, because of the drop in relevant distributions;


(ii) payments of tax credits to exempt institutions and non-taxpayers would fall by £100 million in 1996-97 and £400 million a year starting in 1997-98;


(iii) Payments of mainstream corporation tax would rise by approximately £50 million in 1997-98 and £250 million a year starting in 1998-99; and;


(iv) the liability of higher rate income tax payers would increase by a small amount.

(d) The net revenue effects are, therefore, likely yields of £80 million in 1996-97, £200 million in 1997-98 and £400 million in subsequent years.

(e) The actual revenue effects will depend on the level of relevant distributions that would have been made and the tax liabilities borne when companies make similar or alternative distributions in the future.

The same comparative method of calculation applied to the level of share buybacks and relevant dividends in the financial year 1995-96 and in the period 1 April to 8 October 1996 produces estimates of the total cost to the Exchequer of £400 million respectively, borne over the period 1995-96 to 1997-98 and £450 million.

2 Dec 1996 : Column: 516

Building Societies

Ms Lynne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what plans he has to issue guidance to building societies that are converting to banks as to the manner in which they should issue bonus shares to their members in cases where disabled people have lost the capacity to operate their own accounts and have appointed another person to handle their financial affairs; [2298]

(2) what plans he has to ensure that disabled people who have lost the capacity to operate their own building society accounts and have appointed another person to handle their financial affairs are not excluded from receiving bonus shares when the building society converts to a bank. [2297]

Mrs. Angela Knight: The existing law allows building societies to take account of the interests of disabled people in the position described. The final structure of any distribution is a matter for the society concerned, and it is for its members to decide whether they agree that distribution or not. I understand that the Building Societies Association has issued guidance to its members on future account opening and handling practice in advance of the Disability Discrimination Act coming into force on 2 December.

Unemployment

Mr. Byers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many men aged (a) 18 to 25, (b) 25 to 40, (c) 40 to 50 and (d) 50 to 65 years with no educational qualifications are without a job in (i) the United Kingdom, (ii) Scotland, (iii) Wales and (iv) each English region; and what percentage this represents of the relevant population. [6330]

Mrs. Angela Knight: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Chief Executive of the Office for National Statistics. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Tim Holt to Mr. Stephen Byers, dated 2 December 1996:

The Chancellor of the Exchequer has asked me to reply as the Director of the Office for National Statistics to your recent question on the breakdown of men without a job who have no educational qualifications by age and region and what percentage of all men with no educational qualifications they represent.

The available information for the United Kingdom is shown in the attached table.
Men with no qualifications who are not in employment by age and region(9)

		Number (thousands)					As percentage of total with no educational qualifications
	18-24	25-39	40-49	50-64	18-24	25--39	40-49	50-64
United Kingdom	124	308	200	578	48.1	38.7	30.1	47.3
Great Britain	118	289	191	555	47.9	38.3	29.9	47.3
England	106	242	158	455	49.3	37.5	28.7	45.1
South East	32	80	45	124	48.2	37.8	23.5	37.7
Greater London	18	49	23	60	62.7	46.7	31.1	43.3
Rest of South East	14	31	21	64	37.0	29.1	18.5	33.6
East Anglia	(10)--	(10)--	(10)--	15	(10)--	(10)--	(10)--	34.8
South West	(10)--	18	11	34	(10)--	34.5	25.6	40.6
West Midlands	15	29	24	65	50.0	31.7	33.7	47.1
East Midlands	(10)--	18	13	40	(10)--	31.1	25.6	40.6
Yorks and Humberside	10	28	19	56	46.2	38.8	30.0	52.1
North West	20	44	29	80	55.9	43.3	41.1	60.4
North	(10)--	18	13	43	(10)--	49.8	40.3	64.7
Wales	(10)--	18	14	47	(10)--	41.4	36.0	63.0
Scotland	(10)--	29	19	53	(10)--	44.2	38.1	59.3
Northern Ireland	(10)--	19	(10)--	23	(10)--	45.4	(10)--	46.7




Source:

Labour Force Survey (winter 95/6), Office for National Statistics.

Notes:

(9) Not in employment are those ILO unemployed and inactive.

(10) Sample size too small for reliable estimate.

2 Dec 1996 : Column: 517

2 Dec 1996 : Column: 517

Public Service Pensions

Mr. Matthew Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to increase public service pensions from April 1997. [7454]

Mr. Waldegrave: Under the legislation governing public service pensions they are increased annually by the same percentage as state earnings-related pensions--additional pensions. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Security announced on 26 November, Official Report, columns 207-20, that additional pensions will be increased by 2.1 per cent., in line with the annual increase in the retail prices index up to September. Public service pensions will therefore be increased by 2.1 per cent. from 7 April 1997. Pensions which have been in payment for less than a year will receive a pro rata increase.

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