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Endowment Policies
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate (a) the number of endowment policies that are surrendered each year and (b) the lapse rate for new endowment policies; and if he will list those aspects of the surrender of endowment policies to which the Financial Services Act 1986 regulatory regime applies. [92463]
Ms Hewitt [holding answer 26 July 1999]: There are no published figures available for the number of endowment policies discontinued each year.
| Percentage | |
|---|---|
| Sales channel | Discontinued in year one |
| Company representative | 6.5 |
| Independent financial adviser | 4.5 |
| Direct offer advertisement | 4.5 |
| Home service | 13.0 |
Persistency generally improves during the lifetime of endowment policies. It is inaccurate to extrapolate these figures to subsequent years. Policies discontinued in early years are generally worthless on the traded endowment policy (TEP) market.
The surrender of endowment policies is not regulated under the Financial Services Act (1986).
Mr. Kirkwood:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what level of weekly income for a family of two adults with two children aged 10 and four-years-old he has set as the level which must be exceeded for that family to be lifted out of poverty if the main earner is (a) in work and receiving no benefits and (b) out of work and receiving income support, after receipt of housing and council tax benefits; [93318]
Dawn Primarolo:
The Government's welfare reform programme aims to tackle the root causes of poverty, help people to earn a decent income through work, and provide security for those unable to work. We have announced an ambitious programme of support for families including increases in child benefit, a new Children's Tax Credit, increase in the Working Families Tax Credit and Income Support, and a new Sure Start Maternity Grant of £200. By the end of this Parliament, we will be spending an extra £6 billion a year on children. The Working Families Tax Credit will benefit 1.5 million families who will receive an average of £24 a week more than Family Credit. It will provide a guaranteed minimum income of
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£200 a week for a family with someone in full-time work on the national minimum wage, and more for families with more than one child.
Families with children will, on average, be £740 a year better off as a result of measures in the last two Budgets. We estimate that 800,000 children will be lifted out of poverty as a result. The definition of poverty which underpins this statement was explained in the written answer which the Economic Secretary gave to the hon. Member for Northavon (Mr. Webb) on 14 April 1999, Official Report, column 244.
Ann Clwyd:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will hypothecate the revenue received from defence export levies in order to fund arms control initiatives. [93296]
Mr. Chope:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason the Inland Revenue offices in Bournemouth are not within the area of responsibility of the Director of the Inland Revenue South West Region Executive Office. [93361]
Dawn Primarolo:
The Inland Revenue offices in Bournemouth have been in the area of responsibility of the Director of the Inland Revenue South East Regional Executive Office since the Department was reorganised on a Regional basis in the mid-1970s.
Dr. Fox:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate the Government have made of the amount of tobacco smuggling into the United Kingdom, broken down by country, in the last year for which figures are available. [93219]
Dawn Primarolo:
The provisional assessment of HM Customs and Excise based on their work in progress to monitor the scale of such smuggling (chiefly of cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco) is that the total amount of revenue (excise duty and VAT) evaded through all forms of smuggling of tobacco products in 1998 was around £1.7 billion.
There are insufficient data on which to base a robust quantitative analysis of the amounts smuggled from individual countries.
Ms Oona King:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to implement the recommendation of the urban Task Force to harmonise VAT rates at (a) zero and (b) 5 per cent. for new building and conversions and refurbishments; and if he will make a statement. [93301]
Dawn Primarolo:
EC agreements mean that we cannot introduce any new zero rates or a reduced rate for work to existing buildings.
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The Government share the urban Task Force's desire for an urban renaissance and is giving careful consideration to the report's recommendations. We will give our detailed response to the report in the forthcoming Urban White Paper.
Mr. Mitchell:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the annual average income of wage earners and the proportion of that income taken in direct tax on the basis of the single person's rate each year since 1986. [92683]
Dawn Primarolo
[holding answer 26 July 1999]: The information requested is as set out.
(2) what level of income for a couple with the woman pregnant for the first time he has set as the level which must be exceeded for that family to be lifted out of poverty if the main earner is (a) in work and receiving no benefits and (b) out of work and receiving income support, after receipt of housing and council tax benefits. [93319]
| Annual average earnings (45) | Percentage of income taken in tax for a single person with average earnings (45) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1986-87 | 8,811 | 21.3 |
| 1987-88 | 9,516 | 20.1 |
| 1988-89 | 10,405 | 18.7 |
| 1989-90 | 11,406 | 18.9 |
| 1990-91 | 12,384 | 19.8 |
| 1991-92 | 13,299 | 18.8 |
| 1992-93 | 13,985 | 18.1 |
| 1993-94 | 14,435 | 18.2 |
| 1994-95 | 14,877 | 18.2 |
| 1995-96 | 15,376 | 18.2 |
| 1996-97 | 16,016 | 17.4 |
| 1997-98 | 16,679 | 16.7 |
| 1998-99 | 17,372 | 16.7 |
| 1999-2000 | (46)18,129 | 16.4 |
(45) Average earnings are median earnings for all full-time employees where pay was unaffected by absence, from the New Earnings Survey
(46) Based on the 1998 New Earnings Survey uprated in line with the 1999 Budget forecast.
World Trade
Mr. Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the United Kingdom share of world trade (a) as a whole and (b) in manufactured goods in each year since 1970; and what was the value of (i) UK and (ii) world trade in each of those years. [92560]
Ms Hewitt [holding answer 26 July 1999]: Data for world and UK merchandise trade since 1970, both expressed in US dollars, can be found in the IMF's quarterly Direction of Trade Statistics publication.
Manufacturing Investment
Mr. Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the levels of investment in manufacturing industry since 1979. [92681]
Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 26 July 1999]: The Government have clearly recognised that the UK has a long history of under-performance in investment. That is why they have put in place a comprehensive range of measures designed to tackle this weakness, including macroeconomic reforms to provide a stable environment and a tax framework to encourage investment, such as reducing the rate of corporation tax to its lowest level ever.
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Mr. Mitchell:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the nominal and real level of interest rates for each year since 1979. [92559]
Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 26 July 1999]: Data on short and long-term interest rates, both in the UK and other OECD countries, are available in the publication 'OECD Economic Outlook' in Annexe tables 36 and 37 respectively. An estimate of the real level of interest rates can be calculated using the inflation data contained in table 16 of the same publication.
Ms Lawrence:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what further developments there have been in the Tax Law Rewrite project. [93812]
Dawn Primarolo:
I am pleased to be able to tell the House that the Tax Law Rewrite project is continuing to make good progress. The Inland Revenue will shortly publish the project's seventh Exposure Draft, which contains draft clauses on capital allowances for agricultural buildings, scientific research, mineral extraction and plant and machinery. Copies will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
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