---

Regional Organisations

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what regional organisation his Department has; and if he will list the counties and unitary authorities in each region in (a) 1997 and (b) 2002. [58940]

Mr. Boateng: The Treasury does not have a regional organisation.

Whisky Duty

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is being done to bring whisky duty in to line with other alcohol tariffs by level of alcohol content. [59542]

10 Jun 2002 : Column 847W

Mr. Boateng: The duty on spirits has been frozen in the last five Budgets and a bottle of whisky is now 73p less expensive than it otherwise would have been. The freezes have narrowed the duty differential and the duty on spirits is now 34 per cent. lower (in real terms) than it was 20 years ago.

The Chancellor will continue to take decisions on a Budget by Budget basis, taking into account all relevant factors including the position of UK spirits producers and various duty differentials.

Government Borrowing

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the estimated effect would be on UK net borrowing for the current year if the UK GDP grows at (a) 1.75 per cent., (b) 1.5 per cent. and (c) 1 per cent. rather than the projected rate. [59587]

Mr. Boateng: Paragraph C18 of Budget 2002 gives estimates of the relationship between net borrowing and the output gap.

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the Treasury classes as a prudent and acceptable level of (a) deficit spending for the UK Government and (b) total national debt as a percentage of GDP. [59389]

Mr. Boateng: The Government set fiscal policy to meet their fiscal policy objectives and their two strict fiscal rules:

the golden rule: that, over the economic cycle, the Government will borrow only to invest and not to fund current spending; and


the sustainable investment rule: that public sector net debt as a proportion of GDP will be held, over the economic cycle, at a stable and prudent level, currently defined as below 40 per cent. of GDP.

Further detail showing the Government are projected to meet their fiscal rules over the next five years can be found in Table 2.5 on page 31 of the April 2002 Economic and Fiscal Strategy Report.

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what UK net borrowing was in each year since 1992; and what the predicted UK net borrowing in each year from the current year to 2008 is. [59390]

Mr. Boateng: The available estimates of public sector net borrowing for the UK, expressed in financial years and as a percentage of GDP, are set out in Tables C23 and C2 of Budget 2002.

2001 Census

Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest assessment is of the results from the 2001 Census; and if he will make a statement. [60075]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Edward Davey, dated 10 June 2002:

The National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales has been asked to reply to your recent question concerning what the latest assessment is of the results from the 2001 Census. I am replying in his absence. [60075]

10 Jun 2002 : Column 848W

The first results from the 2001 Census in England and Wales, giving resident population counts for each local authority area, are planned to be published in later summer. The attached press release, issued on Thursday 30 May, gives further details. These counts will form the base for the Registrar General's mid-year estimates of the population for 2001. A summary of key statistics, covering a range of census topics, is planned for publication around the end of 2002. The full local area results will follow in several tranches throughout the first half of 2003.

Mr. Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will include a question on British Sign Language usage in the 2011 census, in the format of Question 9 in the 2001 census. [60115]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from John Kidgell to Mr. James Gray, dated 10 June 2002:

The National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales has been asked to reply to your recent question regarding the inclusion of a question on British Sign Language usage in the 2011 Census, in the format of Question 9 in the 2001 Census. I am replying in his absence. [60115]

The questions to be included in any future Census, will be decided nearer the time. I would expect, as in previous censuses, that the final question content will reflect a widespread need for information not available from other sources and will be based on extensive consultation, including parliamentary debate.

Credit Card Debt

Mr. Tom Harris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the average credit card debt owed by an adult in the UK. [58871]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from John Kidgell to Mr. Tom Harris, dated 10 June 2002:

The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question on average credit card debt. I am replying in his absence. (58871)

Based on figures for amounts outstanding on credit cards of £43.2 billion at the end of March 2002, and a resident population of 46.7 million adults at mid 2002, credit card debt divided by adult population in the United Kingdom is about £900.

Office for National Statistics

Brian Cotter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many businesses have been required to supply information on their returns to the Office for National Statistics in each of the past three years. [59187]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Brian Cotter, dated May 2002:

As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent parliamentary question asking how many businesses have been required to supply information on their returns to the Office for National Statistics in each of the past three years. (59187)

10 Jun 2002 : Column 849W

The total number of enterprises receiving forms for the three years you require is as follows:

Year	Number of enterprises
1999	262,232
2000	274,324
2001	270,045

Source:

Office for National Statistics

Brian Cotter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information businesses are required to supply to the Office for National Statistics; and in which legislation this requirement lies. [59192]

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Brian Cotter, dated May 2002:

As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what information businesses are required to supply to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and in what legislation this requirement lies. (59192)

The ONS requires businesses to supply information on their structure, level of employment and the earnings of its employees, and financial data such as their turnover, sales, prices, stocks and capital expenditure. This information is collected through a range of monthly, quarterly and annual business surveys, with the short term surveys asking for aggregate level data, while the annual surveys seek more detailed structural data. Each business survey is subject to regular review to reassess its continued need. The sample size for each survey is set at the minimum level consistent with the need to produce aggregate statistics for use by the Government in its economic monitoring and planning. Full details of all the business surveys carried out by the ONS are included in the ONS Compliance Plan for 2002 to 2004 which will be available on the ONS website www.statistics.gov.uk/other on the 29th of May.

The information sought from businesses by the ONS is collected under the provisions of the Statistics of Trade Act 1947. The Schedule to the 1947 Act allows for the collection of the following:

The nature of the undertaking (including its association with other undertakings) and the date of its acquisition; the persons employed or normally employed (including working proprietors), the nature of their employment, their remuneration and the hours worked; the output, sales, deliveries and other services provided; the articles acquired or used, orders, stocks and work in progress; the outgoings and costs (including work given out to contractors, depreciation, rent, rates and taxes, other than taxes on profits) and capital expenditure; the receipts of and debts owed to the undertaking; the power used or generated; the fixed capital assets, the plant, including the acquisition and disposal of those assets and that plant and the premised occupied.

The Statistics of Trade Act (Amendment of Schedule Order) 1963, allows for the collection of data relating to assets (other than fixed capital assets) and liabilities of the undertaking, including the acquisition and disposal of those assets and the incurring and discharge of those liabilities; prices of articles and services.

The Statistics of Trade Act (Amendment of Schedule Order) 1987 allows for cases where the undertaking is related to a body situated outside the United Kingdom: the nature and extent of the relationship; the nature and extent (and any changes therein) of the financial interest of the one body in the other; the country in which the related body is situated; particulars in respect of issued share capital, minority shareholders' interests, loans, reserves and provisions as recorded in the accounts of the undertaking or such particulars in respect of the related body where it is under the control of the undertaking; net gains or losses of the undertaking attributable to changes in exchange rates, being gains or losses arising out of the

10 Jun 2002 : Column 850W

relationship; where the undertaking is not a company incorporated in the United Kingdom, its net value to the related body and where the related body is not a body corporate, its net value to the undertaking.

The Statistics of Trade Act (Amendment of Schedule) Order 1990 allows for the collection of data relating to income (including rents, interest and investment income) received or receivable by the undertaking; dividends and interest paid or payable; profits; losses; taxes paid or chargeable on income or gains; services acquired or used.

---