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Financial Action Task Force
Harry Cohen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which countries are listed as non co-operating countries and territories under the Financial Action Task Force process; which countries have been identified as not co-operating with the new recommendations to tackle terrorist financing; how he estimates that non-compliance will affect the UK's relationship with such countries; and if he will make a statement. [62326]
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Ruth Kelly: The following countries and territories are currently listed as non co-operative in the fight against money laundering: Cook Islands, Dominica, Egypt, Guatemala, Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, Lebanon, Marshall Islands, Myanmar, Nauru, Nigeria, Niue, Philippines, Russia, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The list will be reviewed and updated at the forthcoming FATF plenary to be held 18 to 21 June. The FATF has issued a self-assessment questionnaire concerning observance of the eight special recommendations on terrorist financing to both FATF and non-FATF members and will be considering the results at its forthcoming meeting. Countries and territories on the FATF's list have generally worked positively with the FATF to improve their anti money laundering systems and the UK has provided help and support on a bilateral basis to several countries on the list.
Self-employment Tax Claims
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate has been made of the number of false self-employment tax claims in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [62343]
Dawn Primarolo: None. An individual's employment status for tax and national insurance purposes depends on the terms and conditions under which that person is engaged. Where the Inland Revenue discovers that someone is working on terms which should mean they are employed but are being treated incorrectly by their employer as self-employed then the employer may have to meet extra tax and national insurance liabilities for past years, interest and penalties. In cases of fraud or evasion, the Inland Revenue may prosecute.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what measures have been taken to deal with the level of false self-employment tax claims; how much has been spent investigating such claims in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [62342]
Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue aims to ensure that the law on employment status is applied even- handedly across all sectors of industry. As part of its compliance strategy, the Revenue's local employer compliance review teams consider employment status issues when undertaking reviews to ensure employers and contractors are compliant with the tax and national insurance laws generally. No accurate estimate of the cost of the employment status element of these reviews is possible.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate has been made of the cost of false self-employment tax claims in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [62340]
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he plans to take to combat the falsification of tax claims by the self-employed; and if he will make a statement. [62341]
Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue aims to ensure that the law on employment status is applied even- handedly across all sectors of industry. As part of its compliance strategy the Revenue's local employer
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compliance review teams consider employment status issues when undertaking reviews to ensure employers and contractors are compliant with the tax and national insurance laws generally.
Working Families Tax Credit
Mr. Michael Foster: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the number of working families tax credit claimants (a) per constituency and (b) per head of population per constituency. [62645]
Dawn Primarolo: For the number of recipients of working families tax credit in each constituency, I refer my hon. Friend to my answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Jarrow (Mr. Hepburn) on 16 January 2002, Official Report, column 293W.
I understand from the Office for National Statistics that they do not currently produce population estimates for parliamentary constituencies. I am therefore unable to estimate the number of recipients per head of population in each constituency.
Climate Change Levy
Brian Cotter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the impact of the climate change levy on businesses within the retail industry. [61313]
John Healey: All of the revenue from the climate change levy is recycled back to business through NIC cuts and support for energy efficiency. While the levy package is broadly revenue neutral to business as a whole, the effects on any specific sector will depend on a number of factors, including:
- The future energy consumption of firms in the sector and the use they make of levy funded energy efficiency support.
Employment levels in those sectors and the benefits received from the levy-funded national insurance contribution cuts.
What use firms in that sector make of electricity generated from levy exempt renewable sources of energy and combined heat and power.
Customs (Coach Searches)
Mr. Hendry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many coaches returning from trips abroad have been stopped by Customs and Excise, in the past year for searches to be carried out; and what locations away from ports have been used for such searches. [62088]
John Healey: The information is not available in the format requested. Customs keep records on search of person and aggregate data on seizures but do not routinely record every instance in which an officer stops a person or vehicle.
The majority of Customs anti-smuggling searches of international traffic take place at the port, on Port Authority premises. Customs do, on occasions, undertake intelligence-led anti-smuggling work away from the ports (eg intercepting targets on motorways) usually working with the police.
NHS Auditors
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what functions will be fulfilled by the NHS
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auditors referred to in his budget statement; and how these will differ from the current functions, in respect of the NHS, of the (a) National Audit Office and (b) Audit Commission. [51935]
Mr. Hutton: I have been asked to reply.
It is proposed that the new commission for health care audit and inspection will include as its principal roles:
- Inspecting all national health service hospitals;
Licensing private health care provision;
Conducting NHS value for money audits on a national basis;
Validating published performance assessment statistics on the NHS, including waiting list information;
Publishing star ratings for all NHS organisations with the ability to recommend special measures where there are persistent problems;
Publishing reports on the performance of NHS organisations both individually and collectively;
Independent scrutiny of patient complaints;
Publishing an annual report to Parliament on national progress on health care and how resources have been used.
- Appoint auditors to audit the accounts of health bodies
Prescribe the way in which auditors act through a Code of Audit Practice
Set a scale of audit fees payable, and
Carry out 'value for money' studies on the provision of services by audited bodies.
In future the Audit Commission value for money work carried out at both the national and local levels will be transferred to the new body. The Audit Commission will retain responsibility for the financial audit of NHS bodies.
The current role of the National Audit Office in relation to the NHS will remain unchanged. They will continue to audit the summarised accounts of the NHS; to ensure that public money has been spent for the purposes which Parliament intended; to hold the Department accountable for the way it uses taxpayers' money, and to conduct a number of value for money investigations each year.
CABINET OFFICE
Non-departmental Public Bodies
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will list the non-departmental public bodies, covered by the "Quangos: Opening the Doors" document, indicating (a) those that hold annual open meetings, (b) those that release summary reports of meetings, (c) those that invite evidence from members of the public, (d) those that allow public access to their records and (e) those brought within the jurisdiction of the Parliamentary Ombudsman. [62271]
Mr. Alexander: The 1998 publication, "Quangos, Opening the Doors", set out proposals for all non- departmental public bodies (NDPBs), where appropriate, to be more open and responsive to the public. The information
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requested is not currently available but it is my intention to publish later this year in the Cabinet Office's publication "Public Bodies 2002" new information on: annual open meetings; release of summary reports of meetings; registers of members' interests; NDPB ombudsmen; whether annual reports are to be published; and whether the appointments to the NDPBs are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
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