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Church Buildings (VAT)

Mr. Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what basis he has estimated the cost of reduction of VAT on listed church buildings; how many Church of England churches may qualify for the VAT reduction; and if he will make a statement. [146324]

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate (a) the loss of VAT revenue for the proposed reduced rate of VAT on the repair of listed buildings used for worship, (b) the loss of VAT revenue from the conversion of residential properties into a different number of dwellings and (c) loss of revenue arising from the reduced rate of VAT on alterations to protected buildings. [146392]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 22 January 2001]: A recent report by the Churches Main Committee suggests that the VAT paid by all churches, including listed churches, for repairs and maintenance is £38 million per year.

25 Jan 2001 : Column: 709W

According to the last English Church Census, there were 16,000 Church of England churches but separate figures were not collected for listed buildings.

Contributions Agency (Tyne and Wear)

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many whole-time equivalent jobs there were in the Contributions Agency in each district of Tyne and Wear in each of the last five years. [147007]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 24 January 2001]: The number of whole-time equivalent jobs in Contributions Agency, in the unit comprising its Newcastle upon Tyne location (including its outstations), for each of the five years, from 1 April 1994 to 31 March 1999, were as follows:

1 April 1994 to 31 March 1995--5,650

1 April 1995 to 31 March 1996--5,362

1 April 1996 to 31 March 1997--4,465

1 April 1997 to 31 March 1998--4,995

1 April 1998 to 31 March 1999--4,795.

Information on the number of whole-time jobs in the Contributions Agency's Northern Region Field Offices in the Tyne and Wear area is not readily available.

Business Taxation

Mr. Fraser: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received from interested organisations on his policies on business taxation. [145792]

Mr. Gordon Brown: The Government have received a number of representations from interested organisations on business taxation.

Customs and Excise

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer to my hon. Friend the Member for North Tayside (Mr. Swinney) of 15 January 2001, Official Report, column 126W on Customs and Excise, if Her Majesty's Customs and Excise has in the past entered into a confidentiality agreement with a third party for the purpose of evaluating evidence from that third party which may have been offered in respect of litigation. [147017]

Dawn Primarolo: Inquiries of current staff of the Solicitor's Office have not revealed any example of such a confidentiality agreement within the last five years.

Smuggling

Mr. Flight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will estimate on average the number of (a) cigarettes, (b) cigars and (c) packets of hand-rolling tobacco smuggled each day into the United Kingdom in the last 12 months; [145874]

(2) if he will estimate on average the number of (a) pints of beers and cider, (b) bottles of Scotch whisky, (c) bottles of London gin and (d) other spirits smuggled each day into the United Kingdom in the last 12 months; [145876]

(3) if he will estimate the revenue lost to the Exchequer through (a) smuggling of (i) alcohol and (ii) tobacco in 2000 and (b) cross-border shopping for (1) alcohol and (2) tobacco in 1999. [145877]

25 Jan 2001 : Column: 710W

Dawn Primarolo: Estimates of the scale of alcohol and tobacco smuggling in 2000 are being worked on and will be published in due course.

Mr. Flight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons the results of the Alcohol and Tobacco Smuggling Survey of June 2000 have not been published; and if he will place a copy of the results in the Library. [145875]

Dawn Primarolo: The cross-Channel survey is used to assess the volume of smuggling undertaken annually by travellers using light vehicles or on foot. For 1999 overall figures were produced for the total revenue loss from all forms of tobacco smuggling. Comparable figures for 2000 are being prepared and will be published in due course. These will include the results of the June 2000 survey.

Lamfalussy Report

Mr. Denzil Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the final report of the Lamfalussy Committee on the regulation of European securities markets to be presented. [147278]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The report is expected in February.

Alternative Fuels

Mrs. Brinton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received on specific investment incentive measures for new pump infrastructure in alternative fuels in rural areas. [146754]

Mr. Timms: I have received no such recent representations. However, the Government are encouraging the general growth of the market for alternative fuels and receive representations on alternative fuels from a wide range of interested groups. We recognise that an effective refuelling infrastructure is an essential part of developing a sustainable market for alternative fuels.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Ministers of Religion (House of Commons)

Mr. Ivan Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce legislation to allow ministers of religion to become Members of the House of Commons. [147688]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: I will today introduce a Bill which will reform the existing unfair and outdated legislation. It will remove any disqualification from membership of the House of Commons that arises by reason of a person having been ordained or being a minister of a religious denomination.

Hinduja Brothers

Mr. John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from the right hon. Member for Old Bexley and Sidcup (Sir E. Heath) and Dame Angela Rumbold concerning the naturalisation applications of S. P. and G. P. Hinduja. [146094]

25 Jan 2001 : Column: 711W

Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 18 January 2001, Official Report, columns 351-52W, on British citizenship, (a) if he will list the other hon. Members who contacted him concerning this application, (b) on what date communications were received from each hon. Member who contacted him in this case, (c) if he will place in the Library copies of the letters received from (i) the hon. Members for (A) Hartlepool (Mr. Mandelson) and (B) Leicester, East (Mr. Vaz) and (ii) the other hon. Members referred to in his answer, (d) if he will list the nationality applications since May 1997 concerning which communications have been received from the right hon. Member for Hartlepool other than those relating to his constituents and (e) if a reply was sent to the right hon. Member for Hartlepool; and if he will make a statement. [147183]

Mr. Straw: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, announced on 24 January that he had asked former Treasury Solicitor, Sir Anthony Hammond QC, to review the full circumstances surrounding approaches to the Home Office in connection with the possibility of an application for naturalisation by Mr. S. P. Hinduja in 1998. This review is starting immediately and will be completed as quickly as possible. The findings will be published and copies of these will be placed in the Vote Office and the Library. It would be inappropriate for me to pre-empt the outcome of this review.

Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the dates on which applications for nationality have been received by (a) Mr. G. P. Hinduja and (b) Mr. S. P. Hinduja since 1990. [147178]

Mr. Straw: Mr. G. P. Hinduja applied for British citizenship on 21 February 1990 and 5 March 1997.

Mr. S. P. Hinduja applied on 21 February 1990 and 20 October 1998.

Police Management

Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps he has taken to assess the efficiency of police management. [147068]

Mr. Charles Clarke: In November 1998 the Home Office launched a police efficiency process which required police authorities and forces to plan and deliver efficiency gains equivalent to 2 per cent. of Net Revenue Expenditure (NRE) each year between 1999 and 2002. This process is monitored by audit and inspection and in 1999-2000 delivered efficiency gains totalling £183 million, or 2.46 per cent. of NRE.

A Public Sector Productivity Panel report in April 2000 recommended a more sophisticated approach to measuring the relative efficiency of forces. The proposals are currently being trialled.

In April 2000 the police became subject to Best Value legislation which requires each police authority to ensure that its services are delivered by the most effective, economic and efficient means available and, over a five year period, to review all of its functions.

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