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Pensioners
Mr. Bob Russell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received concerning the rate of income tax paid by pensioners who undertake part-time employment. [92547]
Dawn Primarolo: Treasury Ministers have received a number of representations on income tax matters, including matters relating to pensioners.
Pensioner Incomes
Mr. Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 12 July 1999, Official Report, column 83, if he will estimate the number of pensioners with effective rates of deduction from gross income of (a) between 50 and 60 per cent., (b) between 60 and 70 per cent., (c) between 70 and 80 per cent., (d) between 90 and 100 per cent. and (e) above 100 per cent., taking into account the effects of tax rates and benefit withdrawal rates, and the rules regarding deemed income from capital. [91659]
Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 20 July 1999]: I shall write to my right hon. Friend shortly and place a copy in the Library of the House.
Duty Free
Mr. Nigel Jones:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact on (a) revenues and (b) jobs caused by the duty differential between the United Kingdom and the rest of the European Community. [93140]
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Ms Hewitt:
Duty differentials are not the only factor involved in the legal and illegal cross-border trade in excise goods between the UK and other EU member states. Other factors involved include pre-tax price, manufacturers' and retailers' margins, and transportation costs. It is not possible to isolate the effect of duty differentials alone.
HM Customs and Excise estimates of revenue lost through cross-border shopping and smuggling are set out in their technical paper deposited in the House of Commons Library on 19 November 1998. HM Customs and Excise does not have any assessment of the impact of such activities on UK employment.
Mr. Gorrie:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to ask the Office of National Statistics to increase the size of the samples it uses, in order to provide more reliable statistics for Scotland and Wales. [93268]
Ms Hewitt:
Officials in the Office for National Statistics are holding discussions with their counterparts in Scotland and Wales to consider their requirements for enhanced samples. As a result of these discussions it has been established that samples in many cases are sufficient, while some other samples have already been enhanced, particularly in the area of business statistics. I expect these discussions to continue.
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Mr. Pike:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations have been received from overseas Governments with regard to the sale of part of Britain's gold reserves; and if he will make a statement. [93622]
Ms Hewitt:
We have received representations from South Africa, the Southern African Development Community (also representing Angola, Botswana, DRCongo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe), Ghana and Peru.
Ms Drown:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much inheritance tax is raised from non-UK domiciled persons (a) in total and (b) who invest in unit trusts and open-ended investment companies. [93587]
Dawn Primarolo:
I regret that the information is not available centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Love:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the increased take-up of the working families tax credit resulting from the Government's advertising campaign; and if he will make a statement. [93609]
Dawn Primarolo:
The Working Families Tax Credit is central to the Government's aim of making work pay. It will benefit nearly 1.5 million families, providing a minimum guaranteed income for a family with a full time worker of £200 per week. Together with the national minimum wage, increases to child benefit, and reform of tax and national insurance, it will lift around 800,000 children out of poverty.
It is vital that the right people get the information they need to apply for the tax credits they are entitled to. The Government are, therefore, launching a major advertising campaign to provide clear, targeted and comprehensive information. The Government's aim for the campaign is to encourage all those who are eligible for WFTC to apply.
Ms Buck:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many households he estimates will be removed from housing benefit (a) totally and (b) in part in each region in England and Wales following the introduction of the working families tax credit; and if he will estimate the average loss of housing benefit per household. [93067]
Dawn Primarolo:
I shall write to my hon. Friend shortly and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Mr. Cohen:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the amount of (a) Soviet era debt and (b) subsequent debt which the Russian Federation has defaulted upon to date; what is the amount of that country's current debt awaiting service; and if he will make a statement. [91761]
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Ms Hewitt:
There are no publicly available official estimates of Russia's total debts or of its arrears. At the Koln Summit G8 Heads welcomed the outline agreements recently reached by Russia with the IMF and the World Bank and looked forward to their speedy implementation as a further important step in Russia's reform program. They also encouraged the Paris Club to act expeditiously to negotiate a debt rescheduling agreement with Russia once an IMF agreement was in place.
Mr. Alan Campbell:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the tax benefits for pensions and retirement savings currently goes to families earning (a) more than £100,000, (b) between £50,000 and £100,000, (c) between £25,000 and £50,000 and (d) less than £25,000 per year. [93430]
Dawn Primarolo:
The distribution of tax relief for contributions to occupational and personal pension schemes by household earnings is not available.
Mr. Love:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he intends to publish the final report of the Task Force on Credit Union Development; and if he will make a statement. [93543]
Ms Hewitt:
I received it a few days ago and am studying it with interest. I will decide how best to take it forward in due course.
Mr. Roy:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to review the rate of General Betting Duty. [93656]
Mrs. Roche:
The Government keep the revenue yield from General Betting Duty under constant review.
Mr. Roy:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much General Betting Duty (a) was raised in 1998-99 and (b) is forecast to be raised in (i) 1999-2000 and (ii) 2000-2001. [93657]
Mrs. Roche:
In 1998-99, revenue raised from General Betting Duty was £479.8 million. The forecast for total betting and gaming receipts (including General Betting Duty, Pools Betting Duty, Gaming Duty, Amusement Machine Licence Duty, Bingo Duty and Lottery Duty) in 1999-2000, published in the March 1999 Financial Statement and Budget Report, is £1.5 billion. No forecast has been published for 2000-2001.
Ms Lawrence:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made on the proposal to refurbish the Treasury building under the private finance initiative. [92529]
Mr. Milburn:
Ministers have now approved plans for the refurbishment of the Treasury building under the terms of an innovative PFI deal with Exchequer Partnership plc (EP), the Treasury's Private Sector Partner. This flagship PFI project at the heart of Whitehall confirms the Government's commitment to PFI in the accommodation sector. On completion, the project will
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bring together the whole Department in one modern, efficient office building fit for the 21st century. It is the first to follow the recently published Treasury Task Force PFI Standard Contract Guidance. It is also the first project where the service provider, in partnership with the Treasury, will put debt financing out to competition.
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