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TREASURY
Personal Pensions
Sir Norman Fowler: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will announce his decision on the abolition of the carry forward/carry back tax rules relating to personal pensions; and if he will make a statement. [101382]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The proposal to remove the carry forward and carry back facility forms part of the current public consultations on stakeholder pensions. We will announce our intentions when we have considered the responses to the consultation.
Sir Norman Fowler: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the tax relief that will be saved as a result of his proposal to abolish the carry forward/carry back tax rules relating to personal pensions; and if he will make a statement. [101381]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The consultation proposal to remove the carry forward and carry-back facility is intended to simplify pension administration not to raise revenue. We would not expect the removal of carry forward carry back to save tax relief.
Mr. Willetts:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much the Exchequer is estimated to receive as pension contributions and compensation this financial
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year and in each of the following three years in respect of public sector employees who were mis-sold personal pensions between 1988 and 1994. [100917]
Mr. Andrew Smith:
It is estimated that receipts of between £100 and £160 million will be received by the Exchequer this financial year, and in each of the following three years, as a result of public service employees who were mis-sold personal pensions being reinstated into public service pension schemes. The amount of receipts paid in match future liabilities. Any compensation paid into public service schemes will be matched by future benefits to pensioners.
Mr. Rendel:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many electric shock dog collars Her Majesty's Customs and Excise possess; and how many times they have been used, and on how many dogs, since July 1998. [101435]
Miss Melanie Johnson:
HM Customs and Excise do not use collars which administer electric shocks to their dogs.
Mr. Mitchell:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a list of the Transfer of Appropriation Orders applied for by the Commission of the European Union and approved by, or awaiting the approval of, a meeting of a Council of Ministers, indicating for each the (a) budget reference purpose and amount of the original appropriation, (b) reason why it was not spent on the proposed purpose, (c) purpose for which it is to be spent and (d) parliamentary scrutiny to which it was subject. [101625]
Miss Melanie Johnson:
Details of all transfers of appropriations dated up to 30 June 1999 have been deposited and are available in the House of Commons Library. Transfers since that date will be deposited in compliance with the usual procedures.
Mr. Bercow:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will deposit in the Library a copy of the Commission report, "Europe as an economic entity"; and if he will make a statement on policy thereto. [101027]
Miss Melanie Johnson:
The 1996 Commission report "The mutually beneficial effects of greater co-ordination of economic and structural policies (Europe as an economic entity)" presented a study of the employment history of the EU. The report highlighted the importance of the European single market for growth and employment across Europe and underlined the need for further structural reforms to Europe's product and labour markets. A copy of the report has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Mr. Paul Marsden:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in (a) Shrewsbury and Atcham and (b) Shropshire will benefit from the 10p tax rate; and if he will make a statement. [101139]
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Dawn Primarolo:
Almost all of the individual income taxpayers in Shrewsbury and Atcham and in Shropshire will benefit from the 10p tax rate.
Mr. Paul Marsden:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many businesses in (a) Shrewsbury and Atcham and (b) Shropshire will benefit from the reduction in capital gains tax; and if he will make a statement. [101128]
Dawn Primarolo:
My right hon. Friend announced in the Pre-Budget Report that he would be consulting on the detail of a number of possible changes to the capital gains tax treatment of business assets. Any changes to capital gains tax would apply to all qualifying businesses in the area, but we have no specific figures for these.
Mr. Colman:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on progress of the Inland Revenue investigation into the Adlearn Foundation. [100862]
Mr. Timms:
The Inland Revenue has a statutory duty of confidentiality in respect of all taxpayer's affairs. I cannot reveal details of the Department's dealings with any taxpayer.
Mr. Bercow:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the current pensions liabilities of the European Communities; and what reforms to a private-based system are under consideration. [101035]
Mr. Timms:
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him by the Economic Secretary on 3 November 1999, Official Report, column 238W.
The Council has formally invited the Commission to present an assessment of future needs resulting from the pension scheme as well as a proposal to revise the scheme, by the end of June 2000.
Any reforms to a private-based system would have to be proposed by the Commission and they have not yet made any proposals for us to consider.
Mr. Jim Murphy:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many families are projected to benefit from the working families tax credit for each of the first five years. [101329]
Mr. Timms:
It is estimated that for 2000-01, the first full year of the Working Families Tax Credit, about 1.4 million families will be in receipt of the credit.
Mr. Michael J. Foster:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many calls have been received by the Working Families Tax Credit Hotline since its inception from (a) Worcester, (b) Worcestershire, (c) from the West Midlands Region and (d) nationally. [100904]
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Mr. Timms:
The response line for the Working Families Tax Credit and Disabled Person's Tax Credit had handled 780,000 inquiries up to the 30 November. In the Central TV region the response line had handled about 120,000 calls. A more detailed breakdown is not available.
Mr. Paul Marsden:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many children in (a) Shrewsbury and Atcham and (b) Shropshire will benefit from the new Children's Fund; and if he will make a statement. [101125]
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Mr. Timms:
In the 1999 Pre-Budget Report, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that the Government will set up a new Children's Fund in the spending review in 2000. The Fund will support pioneering work by voluntary and community sector organisations working with low-income children and their families, building on the sector's access to communities and families that the statutory sector struggles to engage. The review will take place in forthcoming months and as yet resources have not been allocated to the Fund, but we expect children from all over England to benefit from the activities it will support.