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Shipbuilding Intervention Fund
Mr. Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement regarding eligibility for the Shipbuilding Intervention Fund. [83892]
Mr. Battle: I have decided to extend eligibility for the Shipbuilding Intervention Fund immediately to two shipyards: those of FBM Lairdside Ltd. at Birkenhead and Ailsa-Troon Ltd. at Troon. I will consider similar applications from any other yard which is currently disqualified from applying for Shipbuilding Intervention Fund grants.
Access to the Shipbuilding Intervention Fund will enhance the competitiveness of the companies and is a crucial component of the financing packages which are
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offered to customers. This will enable both yards to compete more effectively in tough international markets and I very much hope it will assist them to secure future orders and jobs.
In making this announcement, I would like to recognise the considerable support the applicants have been given by hon. Members, locally elected representatives and Community Groups.
This announcement is subject to formal approval from the Commission of the European Union.
Mr. Chope:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will place in the Library a copy of the W. S. Atkins reports on the year 2000 preparedness of the oil and gas industry. [83826]
Mr. Wills:
Copies of the Executive Summary of both reports were placed in the Library of the House in answer to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley, East and Mexborough (Mr. Ennis) on 21 April 1999, Official Report, columns 553-55 and made available to the public on the Internet. These Executive Summaries provide a clear and accurate synopsis of the full reports. To prepare meaningful and accurate assessments it was essential that the industry provided full and frank access to DTI's assessor WS Atkins but the detailed information presented in the full report is commercially sensitive and was made available to the Department on the basis that it would not be published.
Mr. Chope:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what restrictions he plans to introduce on home taping; [83828]
Dr. Howells:
There are no plans to introduce levies in the United Kingdom on blank tapes, other recording media or recording equipment, nor do we have any plans to restrict the "time-shifting" exception in UK copyright law which allows home recording of broadcasts to enable viewing or listening at a more convenient time.
An amendment proposed by the European Parliament to the draft EU Directive on copyright and related rights in the information society would require that right owners receive "fair compensation" where exceptions to rights are provided in national law permitting private copying of protected material on audio or audiovisual recording media. However, we do not consider that a levy or other form of payment would be justified in relation to the UK's limited "time-shifting" exception. We are concerned that the overall approach to exception in the Directive is too prescriptive and we will continue to press for more flexibility for member states in this area.
Mr. Chope:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the cost to United Kingdom business of the EU Consumer Guarantee Directive. [83829]
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Dr. Howells:
The Regulatory Appraisal attached to Explanatory Memorandum 9643-96, submitted to Parliament on 3 April 1998, concluded that the average additional recurring costs resulting from the Directive were likely to be up to 0.25 per cent. of consumer expenditure on durable and semi-durable goods; that there would be no change for non-durables; and that non- recurring costs might amount to a further 1-2 per cent. of annual recurring costs.
Mr. Cousins:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were the daily financial flows through the London money markets (a) in 1982, (b) in 1992 and (c) at the latest available date in (i) cash terms, (ii) current prices and (iii) as a percentage of annual gross domestic product for the year in question. [83244]
Ms Hewitt:
I regret that the information requested is not available.
Mr. Blunt:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the tax yield to the UK Exchequer of imposing VAT on air travel, assuming that with international agreement a similar tax was imposed by other countries. [83351]
Dawn Primarolo:
The information is not available.
Mr. Blunt:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the tax yield to the UK Exchequer of imposing VAT on aviation fuel at the same rate as on motor vehicle fuel, assuming that with international agreement a similar rate of tax was imposed by other countries. [83350]
Dawn Primarolo:
HM Customs and Excise estimate the revenue gain to the UK exchequer as a result of introducing VAT on aviation fuel to be negligible.
Mr. Sayeed:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the basis for his proposal to give the Financial Services Agency and its staff statutory immunity. [83700]
Ms Hewitt:
The proposed statutory protection from liability in damages for the Financial Services Authority and its staff for actions carried out in good faith takes forward the existing form of immunity for regulators under the Financial Services Act 1986, the Banking Act 1987 and the Bank of England Act 1998. This was an issue commented on by the Joint Committee on Financial Services and Markets and we are currently considering their recommendations.
Mr. Sayeed:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 2 March 1999, Official Report, column 642, on pensions, what large financial penalties
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are currently incurred by members moving from an occupational pension scheme; and how a pooled pension investment could be used to reduce these. [83706]
Ms Hewitt:
People who leave defined benefit occupational pension schemes in mid-career get paid up rights or transfer values which, depending on the terms of the scheme, are often worth appreciably less than the pension rights their period of service would have earned at normal retirement age. Those who leave a job after a short period often get nothing.
In contrast, defined contribution pension schemes of all kinds provide individual investors with their own defined pension fund, allowing them to move jobs without these financial penalties. Pooled pension investments will be a particularly transparent vehicle for defined contribution schemes.
Mr. Sayeed:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to review the charges and tax incentives of CAT marked ISAs to encourage fund managers to provide managed equity funds to savers. [83702]
Ms Hewitt:
There are no plans to change the CAT standards, or the tax treatment of CAT standard ISAs. To date, around 400 providers have registered as ISA managers. I expect many of these to sell stocks and shares ISAs which invest in managed funds.
Mr. Sayeed:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to publicise the meaning of a CAT standard. [83701]
Ms Hewitt:
The Treasury press release of 1 October 1998 explained the meaning of CAT standards. The Inland Revenue and the Financial Services Authority have both published guides to ISAs which explain CAT standards, as did the Government's ISA advertising campaign. In addition, FSA requires firms which sell CAT standard products to provide straightforward information in the marketing literature which sets out how the standards are met. Many firms' own ISA guides also explain CAT standards.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the introduction of a green transport plan for his Department. [82841]
Ms Hewitt:
The Treasury introduced its Green Transport Plan in March 1999.
Mr. Jim Cunningham:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the take-up rate for the landfill tax credit scheme has been to date; and how many environmental projects have been funded through the scheme in (a) Coventry and (b) the United Kingdom. [83622]
Ms Hewitt:
Persons registered for landfill tax may claim tax credits of 90 per cent. against contributions made to approved environmental bodies, up to a total of 20 per cent. of their annual tax liability, in each 'contribution year'. Credits claimed under the environmental bodies credit scheme since the introduction of the tax on 1 October 1996 to 31 March 1999 amount
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to £141 million. In the same period, total landfill tax revenue gross of claims to environmental bodies credits was £1.1 billion, giving rise to a maximum credit that could have been claimed of £220 million. Therefore, some 64 per cent. of available credits have been taken up.
(2) what plans he has to introduce a levy on (a) video cassettes, (b) video cassette recorders and (c) other audio recording products; and if he will make a statement. [83830]
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