23 Apr 2002 : Column 125W
Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 23 April 2002
TREASURY
Higher-rate Income Tax
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 18 December 2001, Official Report, column 195W, which part of Table 3.4, Inland Revenue Statistics gives the yield from the upper rate of income tax which is forecast for the years (a) 2000–01, (b) 2001–02, (c) 2002–03, (d) 2003–04 and (e) 2004–05; and if he will make a statement. [26695]
Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 16 January 2002]: Available estimates of liabilities from the higher rate of income tax are given in the table.
| £ billion | |
|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | 30.0 |
| 2000–01(1) | 33.3 |
| 2001–02(1) | 35.0 |
| 2002–03(2) | 37.0 |
| 2003–04(2) | 40.7 |
(1) Provisional
(2) Projected
These estimates are based on the Survey of Personal Incomes and are consistent with the April 2002 Budget.
Housing Market Renewal Fund
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the proposed housing market renewal fund. [51781]
Ruth Kelly [holding answer 22 April 2002]: We have received a joint representation from the National Housing Federation, Key Cities Housing Group and the Northern Housing Forums, proposing a Housing Market Renewal Fund to address the serious problems experienced by areas affected by low housing demand. We are considering this and other proposals as part of the current Spending Review and our conclusions will be announced in due course.
Motor Fuel Smuggling Duties
(Northern Ireland)
Mr. Quentin Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Customs and Excise officers have been employed on motor fuel smuggling duties in Northern Ireland in each year since 1997. [50026]
Mr. Boateng [holding answer 22 April 2002]: Up to April 2000, 25 Customs and Excise officers were employed to tackle hydrocarbon oils smuggling in Northern Ireland. The number of staff was increased to 118 in September 2000 and since January 2001 it has been
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further increased to over 160. The Government plan further enhancements to Customs efforts in this area during the course of this year.
Insurance Premium Tax
Mr. Willis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue the insurance premium tax has generated since 11 September 2001. [51475]
Ruth Kelly: Figures for receipts of insurance premium tax are shown in the Office for National Statistics publication "Financial Statistics".
Mr. Willis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason there is no financial allowance for those who collect insurance premium tax for the Exchequer. [51477]
Ruth Kelly: It has always been a general feature of taxation policy that those who are legally liable to account for tax should bear the cost of carrying out their obligations.
Mr. Willis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to raise insurance premium tax. [51476]
Ruth Kelly: As will be clear from the Chancellor's Budget statement on 17 April, he has no current plan to raise the level of insurance premium tax.
Departmental Functions
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the functions of his Department that have been (a) market tested and (b) outsourced in each of the last five years, specifying the (i) money saving and (ii) percentage saving in each case. [42991]
Ruth Kelly: Three functions were outsourced in the last five years, as follows:
The Central Reprographic Unit was outsourced during 2000–01. The money saving is estimated at £70,500, and the percentage saving is estimated at 22 per cent.
Historic file storage was outsourced in early 2000. An investment appraisal showed that the outsourcing would result in savings using various assumptions about the cost of storage space in the current Treasury accommodation.
The Goods Inwards and Post Room were outsourced in April 2001. The estimated money saving is £46,400, and the percentage saving is estimated at 15 per cent.
Monterrey Conference
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he had at the Financing for Development Conference in Mexico on debt relief with the (a) IMF, (b) World bank and (c) regional development banks. [46656]
Mr. Boateng: No Treasury Minister attended the Financing for Development conference, where Her Majesty's Government was represented by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development.
23 Apr 2002 : Column 127W
Beer and Wine
Jane Griffiths: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of beer and wine personally imported into the UK was imported in quantities exceeding the maximum indicative limit in 2001. [50043]
Mr. Boateng: Figures for the revenue evaded from cross-channel passenger smuggling of beer and wine in 2001 are contained in the HM Customs and Excise document "Measuring Indirect Tax Fraud" which was published with the November 2001 pre-Budget report and a copy placed in the Library.
The latest figures for the revenue avoided through cross-border shopping of beer and wine relate to 1999–2000 and are contained in the same document.
Jane Griffiths: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what rate of duty pass-on he assumes to retail prices for each increase of 1p in beer duty. [50045]
Mr. Boateng: Calculation of the expected effects on consumer demand, resulting from changes in duty rates on excise goods, assumes that any change in duty is passed on in full to the consumer.
Jane Griffiths: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the Treasury Model of the economy shows to be the consequences of changes in the rate of beer duty on (a) the wider economy and (b) net revenues. [50046]
Mr. Boateng: Estimates of the impact of changes in the rate of beer duty are given in "Tax Ready Reckoner and Tax Reliefs" published in November 2001 by HMT, and available in the House of Commons Library.
Jane Griffiths: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the impact of each 1p change in UK duty on the volume of smuggled beer. [50047]
Mr. Boateng: No estimate is available.
Jane Griffiths: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the loss of revenue from other taxes on the hospitality industry consequent on each 1p rise in beer duty. [50048]
Mr. Boateng: No such estimate has been made.
Illegal Meat
Adam Price: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what tonnage of illegal meat has been confiscated by UK Customs over the last 10 years. [50452]
Mr. Boateng: Central records of Customs seizures of meat and meat products are available only from 2000. Records for calendar years 2000 and 2001 show:
- 2000: 2.88 metric tonnes seized
2001: 9.17 metric tonnes seized.
Climate Change Levy
Mr. Stunell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue has been raised in the first full year of the climate change levy; and how this revenue has been allocated. [50449]
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Mr. Boateng: Climate change levy receipts up to 31 March 2002 are £551 million. However, CCL was introduced on 1 April 2001, and revenue was not received until July 2001. Due to start-up effects, therefore, 2001–02 is not a full year.
Revenue is recycled to business through a 0.3 percentage point reduction in employers' national insurance contributions. The levy package also includes a targeted programme of support measures for businesses investing in energy-saving technologies and practices. The levy package as a whole is intended to be broadly revenue neutral.
European Union Funds
Mr. Wray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the UK contribution to European Union funds has been for each of the past five years; and how much the UK has received in its rebate in each of those years. [51239]
Ruth Kelly: The UK's gross contribution to the EC budget in 2000–01 and 2001–02 was £10.6 billion and £9.2 billion respectively; the UK abatement for these years was £2.2 billion and £4.4 billion respectively. Details of the UK's gross contribution to the EC budget together with the value of the UK abatement for earlier years can be found in Table 14a of the Departmental Report of the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Departments (Cm 5116) published in April 2001.
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