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Fish Farming

Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many environmental statements have been submitted under the (a) Environmental Assessment (Salmon Farming in Marine Waters) Regulations 1988 and (b) Environmental Impact Assessment (Fish Farming in Marine Waters) Regulations 1999. [149201]

Mr. Foulkes [holding answer 6 February 2001]: I have been asked to reply.

Between the regulations coming into force and 1 July 1999 no environmental statements were received. Since July 1999 this has been a matter for the Scottish Executive.

TREASURY

Budget

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many in-year amendments were made to the UK Budget in the latest year for which figures are available, broken down by (a) transfers between Departments, (b) new resources, (c) transfers from reserve and (d) other transfers, across all Departments. [151227]

Mr. Andrew Smith: Changes made to published plans for 1999-2000 are explained in Chapter 2 of "Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2000-01", Cm 4601, April 2000.

Departmental Underspends

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the underspend in each financial year in the total budget of UK Departments as a percentage of the UK Budget; and what the equivalent figures are for the Scottish DEL for each year for which figures are available since 1971. [151223]

Mr. Andrew Smith: Given changes in the system of public expenditure control, comparison of outturn against budgetary measures over time are not meaningful. Under the current system, detailed breakdown of outturn against provision is given in July in "Public Expenditure Provisional Outturn", last published in July 2000 for financial year 1999-2000. There are equivalent tables in previous editions of the same publication for each financial year since 1994-95.

UK Reserve

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what (a) the total amount of the UK reserve in cash and real terms, (b) the annual draw on the reserve in cash and real terms and (c) the annual draw by the Scottish Office and Scotland Office in cash and real terms was in each year since 1971. [151230]

Mr. Andrew Smith: The Government do not publish figures for allocations from the Reserve overall as it is an administrative tool in controlling overall spending, rather than a budget in its own right. Individual allocations to the Scotland Office and the Scottish Office will be apparent from Estimates laid at the time to draw down those allocations.

27 Feb 2001 : Column: 640W

Finance Act 1997

Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what cost/benefit analysis he has undertaken of the effect of section 42 of the Finance Act 1997; and if he will make a statement. [150541]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 15 February 2001]: No such analysis has been undertaken since this was a measure to counter potential tax avoidance.

Labour Costs

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total share of the annual budget of each of the UK departments accounted for by labour costs. [151224]

Mr. Andrew Smith: The Treasury publishes aggregate paybill figures which are set out in "Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2000-01" (Cm 4601), a copy of which is in the Library. However, each Department publishes details of its own expenditure in the departmental annual reports, which are also held in the Library.

Scottish Executive

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the basis is for the calculation of the allocation of resource placed at the disposal of the Scottish Executive for meeting capital charges under the new system of resource account budgeting; and how this sum will be accommodated in future years. [151229]

Mr. Andrew Smith: The treatment of capital charges is described in the Statement of Funding Policy published in July 2000.

Capital Projects

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the public sector capital projects involving private finance (a) completed, (b) planned and (c) under way, indicating the start dates and estimated completion dates of each; what total estimated capital investment is included in these projects; what annual public expenditure is required to service these projects in cash terms for each year of their life; and what the total lifetime cost is of (i) each project, (ii) each sector's projects and (iii) in total in cash terms. [151225]

Mr. Andrew Smith: The information sought is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

However, in line with our normal practice, we shall be publishing in the Budget information on private sector capital deployed in support of PFI signed deals and deals about to be signed, broken down by Department, and on the Government's aggregate service payment commitments under signed PFI contracts.

Earnings (Scotland)

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what percentage of taxpayers in Scotland earned income over (a) £30,000, (b) £40,000, (c) £35,000, (d) £45,000, (e) £50,000, (f) £60,000, (g) £70,000, (h) £80,000, (i) £90,000 and (j) £100,000 in the most recent year for which figures are available. [151222]

27 Feb 2001 : Column: 641W

Dawn Primarolo: A distribution of taxpayers in Scotland is published in Inland Revenue Statistics table 3.11. A copy is in the Library of this House.

Barnett Formula

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the categories are of comparable expenditure by English and other UK Departments used in the calculation of the Barnett formula; what the total expenditure is in each of these categories; what share of that spending is allocated to Scotland; what the spending from each category is allocated to Scotland; and what the total amount in each category is in cash terms in each year for which figures are available. [151221]

Mr. Andrew Smith: Information on categories of comparable spending in UK Departments, expenditure in each category, and the Scotland comparability percentages were set out in Annexe C of the Statement of Funding Policy published in July 2000. Spending is allocated to Scotland in the form of the aggregate Departmental Expenditure Limit, which the Scottish Executive then allocates to programmes according to its own priorities. The Scotland Departmental Expenditure Limits, along with the Departmental Expenditure Limits for UK Departments, were published in the Government's 2000 Spending Review in July 2000.

Tax Credits

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the estimated percentage reduction will be in the total tax bill for an individual earning (a) £10,000, (b) £15,000, (c) £20,000, (d) £25,000, (e) £30,000 and (f) £35,000 as a result of the proposed children's tax credit. [151226]

Dawn Primarolo: A children's tax credit worth up to £8.50 per week will be equivalent to reductions in an individual's income tax as set out in the table.

Earnings	Percentage tax cut
£10,000	44
£15,000	21
£20,000	14
£25,000	10
£30,000	8
£35,000	6

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total cost of administering family credit and the Working Families Tax Credit was in each year since 1988 broken down, where appropriate, into the costs to central Government and the cost to businesses. [151461]

Dawn Primarolo: Working Families Tax Credit (WFTC) was introduced in October 1999. For information on costs from that date, I refer the hon. Member to my answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Bridgend (Mr. Griffiths) on 13 February 2001, Official Report, column 103W.

27 Feb 2001 : Column: 642W

I understand from the Department of Social Security that the estimated annual costs for Family Credit in Great Britain are given in successive DSS Departmental Reports; and that no estimates are available of the cost to businesses.

Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many families are expected to receive the new children's tax credit in the Glasgow parliamentary constituencies in the next financial year. [151619]

Dawn Primarolo: An estimate of the number of families in Glasgow constituencies who will be eligible to claim the children's tax credit (CTC) is unavailable, but an estimate of the number of families in Scotland who will be eligible to claim CTC is 400,000.

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many cases he has been informed of in which an employer has charged employees for the payment of tax credits; and what action he has taken against the companies involved. [151458]

Dawn Primarolo: Unauthorised deductions from wages are prohibited by general employment law. The January 2001 edition of the Inland Revenue's "Employer's Bulletin" reminded all employers that they must not charge their employees for paying tax credits through the payroll.

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