| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Local Government
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had, with which bodies, in respect of the year 2000 Spending Review on local government; and if he will publish the minutes of meetings relating to this. [131767]
Mr. Paul Murphy: The Spending Review is internal to Government; there are no formal consultations with outside bodies. However, over the last year I have discussed the needs of local government in Wales with a number of organisations including the Welsh Local Government Association, and my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary has met with representatives of 20 of the 22 local authorities in Wales. These meetings have given me a sound understanding of the funding needs for local government ahead of the 2000 Spending Review. It is of course a matter for the National Assembly for Wales to decide how it spends the settlement it has received.
Council Tax
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the Band D Council Tax in each of the local authorities in Wales in each financial year since 1994. [131656]
Mr. Hanson: The information requested from 1994-95 to 1999-2000 is as follows.
24 Jul 2000 : Column: 480W
| 1996-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Isle of Anglesey | 417 | 424 | 477 | 534 |
| Gwynedd | 483 | 515 | 571 | 618 |
| Conwy | 401 | 403 | 460 | 488 |
| Denbighshire | 462 | 529 | 599 | 647 |
| Flintshire | 501 | 511 | 563 | 592 |
| Wrexham | 489 | 520 | 575 | 633 |
| Powys | 434 | 426 | 501 | 552 |
| Ceredigion | 509 | 562 | 623 | 670 |
| Pembrokeshire | 436 | 451 | 507 | 542 |
| Carmarthenshire | 553 | 557 | 613 | 666 |
| Swansea | 455 | 478 | 548 | 596 |
| Neath Port Talbot | 546 | 621 | 692 | 750 |
| Bridgend | 500 | 539 | 601 | 647 |
| Vale of Glamorgan | 435 | 443 | 495 | 532 |
| Rhondda Cynon Taff | 500 | 560 | 611 | 686 |
| Merthyr Tydfil | 496 | 569 | 639 | 712 |
| Caerphilly | 471 | 519 | 583 | 633 |
| Blaenau Gwent | 437 | 492 | 563 | 640 |
| Torfaen | 440 | 483 | 532 | 564 |
| Monmouthshire | 409 | 403 | 452 | 485 |
| Newport | 391 | 413 | 464 | 531 |
| Cardiff | 428 | 486 | 546 | 573 |
The figures for 2000-01 are a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.
Cardiff County Council
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the assets transferred to Cardiff county council included within the Memorandum of Understanding between the Welsh Office and Cardiff county council on 1 April 1999 indicating what each related to and which minister was responsible for negotiating the transfer. [131670]
Mr. Paul Murphy: This is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales, since implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding took place after the transfer of functions to the Assembly.
24 Jul 2000 : Column: 481W
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans there are to develop the land, to Ferry Road, included within the memorandum of understanding between his Department and Cardiff county council of 1 April 1999; what estimates were made of the cost of this land at the time of the transfer; and what is the estimated current cost of this land. [131660]
Mr. Paul Murphy: This is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales. The relevant functions transferred to the Assembly on 1 July 1999.
Nolan Rules
Mr. Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list each group that is responsible to his Department, with significant and plural membership from outside the Civil Service, and to which the Nolan rules on non-departmental public bodies do not apply and for each such group, if it (a) is a company limited by guarantee, (b) is a charity, (c) has no formal legal basis, and (d) has some other legal basis giving details. [131239]
Mr. Paul Murphy: There are no such groups responsible to my Department.
Working Families Tax Credit
Mr. Barry Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the First Secretary about the implementation of working families tax credit; and if he will make a statement. [132378]
Mr. Hanson: My right hon. Friend and I have regular discussions with the First Secretary about a range of UK Government policies including the Working Families Tax Credit (WFTC).
Progress with the implementation of WFTC has been very encouraging. At the end of April, it is estimated that 62,000 families in Wales were receiving WFTC--12,000 more than were receiving Family Credit at its peak.
Investment
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the level of investment in Wales in each year since 1994. [131662]
24 Jul 2000 : Column: 482W
Mr. Paul Murphy: Government expenditure which can be identified as having been incurred for the benefit of Wales since 1994 is as follows:
| Year | £ million |
|---|---|
| 1994-95 | 12,756 |
| 1995-96 | 13,329 |
| 1996-97 | 13,803 |
| 1997-98 | 13,988 |
| 1998-99 | 14,398 |
This includes expenditure by the Welsh Office as well as expenditure for the benefit of Wales by Whitehall departments. Figures for the total identifiable expenditure in Wales for 1999-2000 and for the current year have not yet been complied by the Treasury.
TREASURY
Taxation
Mr. Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 22 February 2000, Official Report, column 998W, to the hon. Member for Northavon (Mr. Webb), if he will recalculate the figures using data from the 1998-99 Family Expenditure Survey. [129806]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Matthew Taylor, dated 24 July 2000:
- As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking, pursuant to our answer of 22 February 2000, for corresponding estimates for 1998-99 of the percentage of the income of each quintile group of the population using data from the Family Expenditure Survey.
- The information requested is set out in the table attached. The analyses in the article are based on data from the Family Expenditure Survey and are therefore subject to a margin of error due to sampling variation. The changes in the figures from 1997-98 are too small to draw conclusions about changes in the tax burden over this two year period. These figures are derived from Table 2A in Appendix 1 of the article 'The effects of taxes and benefits on household income, 1998-99' published in the April 2000 edition of Economic Trends.
24 Jul 2000 : Column: 481W
| Quintile groups of households(1) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bottom | Second | Third | Fourth | Top | All households | |
| Total direct taxes | 12 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 24 | 21 |
| Income tax(1) | 4 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 18 | 14 |
| Employees' NIC(1) | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| Local taxes(1) | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Total indirect taxes | 28 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 12 | 16 |
| VAT | 11 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 7 |
| Duty on petrol/oil | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Duty on tobacco | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | -- | 1 |
| Duty on alcohol | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Other indirect taxes(1) | 10 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 6 |
(1) Households are ranked by equivalised disposable income.
(1) Income tax is net of tax relief on mortgage interest and life assurance premiums.
(1) National Insurance Contributions.
(1) Council tax, domestic rates and water charges after deducting discounts, council tax benefits and rates rebates.
(1) Includes intermediate taxes, vehicle excise duty and lottery and betting taxes.
24 Jul 2000 : Column: 483W
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |