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Finance Bill


Finance Bill
Part 1 — Excise duties

    1

 

A

Bill

[AS AMENDED IN THE COMMITTEE AND IN STANDING COMMITTEE B]

To

Grant certain duties, to alter other duties, and to amend the law relating to the

National Debt and the Public Revenue, and to make further provision in

connection with finance.

Most Gracious Sovereign,

We , Your Majesty’s most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Commons of the United

Kingdom in Parliament assembled, towards raising the necessary supplies to

defray Your Majesty’s public expenses, and making an addition to the public

revenue, have freely and voluntarily resolved to give and to grant unto Your Majesty

the several duties hereinafter mentioned; and do therefore most humbly beseech

Your Majesty that it may be enacted, and be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent

Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and

Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as

follows:—

Part 1

Excise duties

Tobacco products duty

 1     Rates of tobacco products duty

     (1)    For the Table of rates of duty in Schedule 1 to the Tobacco Products Duty Act

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1979 (c. 7) substitute—


 
Bill 12553/2
 
 

Finance Bill
Part 1 — Excise duties

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Table

 

1.  Cigarettes

An amount equal to 22 per cent of

 
  

the retail price plus £96.88 per

 
  

thousand cigarettes.

 
 

2.  Cigars

£141.10 per kilogram.

 

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3.  Hand-rolling tobacco

£101.42 per kilogram.

 
 

4.  Other smoking tobacco

£62.03 per kilogram.

 
 

and chewing tobacco

  

     (2)    This section shall be deemed to have come into force at 6 o’clock in the evening

of 9th April 2003.

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Alcoholic liquor duties

 2     Rate of duty on beer

     (1)    In section 36(1AA)(a) of the Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 (c. 4) (rate of duty

on beer), for “£11.89” substitute “£12.22”.

     (2)    This section shall be deemed to have come into force at midnight on 13th April

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2003.

 3     Rates of duty on wine and made-wine

     (1)    For Part 1 of the Table of rates of duty in Schedule 1 to the Alcoholic Liquor

Duties Act 1979 (rates of duty on wine and made-wine) substitute—


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Part 1

Wine and made-wine of a strength not exceeding 22 per cent

 

Description of wine or made-wine

Rates of duty per

 
  

hectolitre

 
  

£

 

25

 

Wine or made-wine of a strength not

48.91

 
 

exceeding 4 per cent

  
 

Wine or made-wine of a strength exceeding

67.25

 
 

4 per cent but not exceeding 5.5 per cent

  
 

Wine or made-wine of a strength exceeding

158.69

 

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5.5 per cent but not exceeding 15 per cent

  
 

and not sparkling

  
 

Sparkling wine or sparkling made-wine of a

166.70

 
 

strength exceeding 5.5 per cent but less

  
 

than 8.5 per cent

  

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Finance Bill
Part 1 — Excise duties

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Description of wine or made-wine

Rates of duty per

 
  

hectolitre

 
 

Sparkling wine or sparkling made-wine of a

220.54

 
 

strength of 8.5 per cent or of a strength

  
 

exceeding 8.5 per cent but not exceeding

  

5

 

15 per cent

  
 

Wine or made-wine of a strength exceeding

211.58

 
 

15 per cent but not exceeding 22 per cent

  
 

     (2)    This section shall be deemed to have come into force at midnight on 13th April

2003.

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Hydrocarbon oil duties

 4     Rates of hydrocarbon oil duties

     (1)    In section 6(1A) of the Hydrocarbon Oil Duties Act 1979 (c. 5) (rates of duty)—

           (a)           in paragraph (a) (ultra low sulphur petrol) for “£0.4582” substitute

“£0.4710”,

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           (b)           in paragraph (b) (other light oil) for “£0.5468” substitute “£0.5620”,

           (c)           in paragraph (c) (ultra low sulphur diesel) for “£0.4582” substitute

“£0.4710”, and

           (d)           in paragraph (d) (other heavy oil) for “£0.5182” substitute “£0.5327”.

     (2)    In section 6AA(3) of that Act (biodiesel duty) for “£0.2582” substitute “£0.2710”.

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     (3)    In section 13A(1) of that Act (rebate on unleaded petrol) for “£0.0586”

substitute “£0.0601”.

     (4)    This section shall come into force on 1st October 2003.

 5     Rebates on hydrocarbon oil duties

     (1)    In section 11(1) of the Hydrocarbon Oil Duties Act 1979 (rebate on heavy oil)—

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           (a)           in paragraph (a) (fuel oil) for “£0.0274” substitute “£0.0382”,

           (b)           in paragraph (b) (gas oil: general) for “£0.0313” substitute “£0.0422”,

and

           (c)           in paragraph (ba) (ultra low sulphur diesel) for “£0.0313” substitute

“£0.0422”.

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     (2)    In section 14(1) of that Act (furnace fuel) for “£0.0274” substitute “£0.0382”.

     (3)    This section shall be deemed to have come into force at 6 o’clock in the evening

of 9th April 2003.

Betting and gaming duties

 6     General betting duty and pool betting duty: relief for losses

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     (1)    Part 1 of the Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 (c. 63) (betting duties) is

amended as follows.

 

 

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Part 1 — Excise duties

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     (2)    In section 5 (net stake receipts) at the end of subsection (3) (negative net stake

receipts to be disregarded) insert “except as provided for by section 5AA”.

     (3)    After that section insert—

       “5AA            Relief for losses

           (1)           This section applies where the amount of a person’s net stake receipts

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for an accounting period in respect of a class of bets (calculated in

accordance with section 5(1)) is a negative amount.

           (2)           That amount shall be carried forward to the following accounting

period and, to the extent that it does not exceed it, deducted from the

amount of the person’s net stake receipts in respect of the same class of

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bets for that period.

           (3)           If the amount of those net stake receipts for that following accounting

period—

                  (a)                 is not a positive amount, or

                  (b)                 is less than the amount carried forward,

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                         the amount carried forward or, as the case may be, the balance of it shall

be treated for the purposes of this section as if it were a negative

amount of net stake receipts for that period in respect of the same class

of bets.”.

     (4)    Omit section 5A (multiple bets) (which becomes unnecessary as a result of the

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amendment made by subsection (3) above).

     (5)    After section 7 (duty charged on net pool betting receipts) insert—

       “7ZA            Relief for losses

           (1)           This section applies where the amount of a person’s net pool betting

receipts for an accounting period is a negative amount.

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           (2)           That amount shall be carried forward to the following accounting

period and, to the extent that it does not exceed it, deducted from the

amount of the person’s net pool betting receipts for that period.

           (3)           If the amount of the net pool betting receipts for that following

accounting period—

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                  (a)                 is not a positive amount, or

                  (b)                 is less than the amount carried forward,

                         the amount carried forward or, as the case may be, the balance of it shall

be treated for the purposes of this section as if it were a negative

amount of net pool betting receipts for that period.”.

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     (6)    The amendments made by this section apply in relation to any accounting

period beginning on or after 1st September 2003 for which the net stake

receipts in respect of a particular class of bets, or (as the case may be) the net

pool betting receipts, is a negative amount.

 7     General betting duty: betting exchanges

40

     (1)    Part 1 of the Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 (c. 63) (betting duties) is

amended as follows.

 

 

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Part 1 — Excise duties

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     (2)    After section 5AA (inserted by section 6 above) insert—

       “5AB Betting exchanges

           (1)           This section applies where—

                  (a)                 one person makes a bet with another person using facilities

provided by a third person in the course of a business, and

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                  (b)                 that business is one that does not involve the provision of

premises for use by persons making or taking bets.

           (2)           General betting duty shall be charged on the amounts (“commission

charges”) that the parties to the bet are charged, whether by deduction

from winnings or otherwise, for using those facilities.

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           (3)           No deductions shall be allowed from commission charges.

           (4)           The amount of duty charged under this section in respect of bets

determined in an accounting period shall be 15 per cent of the

commission charges relating to those bets.

           (5)           For the purposes of this section, and section 5B(4) so far as relating to

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this section, a person who arranges for facilities relating to a bet to be

provided by another person shall be treated as providing them himself

(and the other person shall not).”.

     (3)    In section 5B (liability to pay)—

           (a)           for subsection (1) substitute—

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                  “(1)                    All general betting duty chargeable in respect of—

                        (a)                        bets made in an accounting period, or

                        (b)                        in the case of duty chargeable under section 5AB, bets

determined in an accounting period,

                                      shall become due at the end of that period.”;

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           (b)           in subsection (4), after “section 4(1) to (3)” insert “or 5AB”.

     (4)    In section 5C (bet-brokers)—

           (a)           in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) (application of section) after “in the

course of a business” insert “, other than a betting-exchange business,”;

           (b)           at the end of that subsection insert—

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                                                          “In paragraph (a) “betting-exchange business” means a

business such as is mentioned in section 5AB(1).”;

           (c)           omit subsections (2) (bet treated as made between bettor and bet-

broker) and (3) (subsection (2) not to apply to off-course bets where bet-

taker is a bookmaker);

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           (d)           in subsection (4) omit the words “In the case of a bet which is excluded

from subsection (2) by virtue of subsection (3),”.

     (5)    The amendments made by this section apply in relation to any accounting

period beginning on or after 1st June 2003.

     (6)    Those amendments do not apply in relation to a bet (a “straddling bet”) that

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is—

           (a)           made, using facilities provided by a person (“the broker”), in an

accounting period of the broker beginning before 1st June 2003, but

           (b)           not determined until an accounting period of the broker beginning on

or after that date.

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Finance Bill
Part 1 — Excise duties

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     (7)    Any winnings paid in respect of a straddling bet to which section 5AB of the

Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 (c. 63) would apply but for subsection (6)

above shall be treated for the purposes of that Act as paid in the broker’s

accounting period in which the bet was made (“the earlier accounting period”).

     (8)    Subsection (7) shall not have effect to reduce the general betting duty payable

5

by the broker for the earlier accounting period; but the amount of the reduction

that would (but for this subsection) have been made for that period shall be set

against any liability of the broker to general betting duty for accounting

periods in the following three years, taking earlier periods before later ones

until the amount is exhausted.

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 8     General betting duty: restriction of exemption for on-course bets

     (1)    In section 12(4) of the Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 (general betting

duty: supplementary provisions), in the definition of “on-course bet” for “a

meeting” substitute “a horse or dog race meeting”.

     (2)    This section applies to bets made on or after 1st September 2003.

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 9     Bingo duty

     (1)    For sections 17 to 20 of the Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 (bingo duty)

substitute—

       “17               Bingo duty

           (1)           A duty of excise, to be known as bingo duty, shall be charged—

20

                  (a)                 on the playing of bingo in the United Kingdom, and

                  (b)                 at the rate of 15 per cent of a person’s bingo promotion profits

for an accounting period.

           (2)           Subsection (1) is subject to the exemptions specified in Part 1 of

Schedule 3 to this Act.

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           (3)           The amount of a person’s bingo promotion profits for an accounting

period is—

                  (a)                 the amount of the person’s bingo receipts for the period

(calculated in accordance with section 19), minus

                  (b)                 the amount of his expenditure on bingo winnings for the period

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(calculated in accordance with section 20).

           (4)           Bingo duty charged in respect of a person’s bingo promotion profits

shall be paid by him.

           (5)           Where the amount that would be charged in respect of a person’s bingo

promotion profits for an accounting period is less than £1, no duty shall

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be charged.

       18               Accounting period

           (1)           For the purposes of section 17 an accounting period ends, and another

begins, at the end of the last Sunday in each calendar month.

           (2)                         But regulations under paragraph 9 of Schedule 3 to this Act may make

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provision in place of subsection (1) for the purposes of the application

of section 17 to specified persons or in specified circumstances.

 

 

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Part 1 — Excise duties

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           (3)                         Regulations made by virtue of subsection (2) may make transitional

provision.

       19               Bingo receipts

           (1)           A person has bingo receipts for an accounting period if payments fall

due in the period in respect of entitlement to participate in bingo

5

promoted by him.

           (2)           The amount of the person’s bingo receipts for the accounting period is

the aggregate of those payments.

           (3)                         For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2)—

                  (a)                 an amount in respect of entitlement to participate in a game of

10

bingo is to be treated as falling due in the accounting period in

which the game is played,

                  (b)                 it is immaterial whether an amount falls due to be paid to the

promoter or to another person,

                  (c)                 it is immaterial whether an amount is described as a fee for

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participation, as a stake, or partly as one and partly as the other,

and

                  (d)                 where a sum is paid partly in respect of entitlement to

participate in a game of bingo and partly in respect of another

matter—

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                        (i)                        such part of the sum as is applied to, or properly

attributable to, entitlement to participate in the game

shall be treated as an amount falling due in respect of

entitlement to participate in the game, and

                        (ii)                       the remainder shall be disregarded.

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       20              Expenditure on bingo winnings

           (1)                         A person’s expenditure on bingo winnings for an accounting period is

the aggregate of the values of prizes provided by him in that period by

way of winnings at bingo promoted by him.

           (2)           Where a prize is obtained by the promoter from a person not connected

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with him, the cost to the promoter shall be treated as the value of the

prize for the purpose of subsection (1).

           (3)           Where a prize is a voucher which—

                  (a)                 may be used in place of money as whole or partial payment for

benefits of a specified kind obtained from a specified person,

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                  (b)                 specifies an amount as the sum or maximum sum in place of

which the voucher may be used, and

                  (c)                 does not fall within subsection (2),

                         the specified amount is the value of the voucher for the purpose of

subsection (1).

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           (4)           Where a prize is a voucher (whether or not it falls within subsection (2))

it shall be treated as having no value for the purpose of subsection (1)

if—

                  (a)                 it does not satisfy subsection (3)(a) and (b), or

                  (b)                 its use as described in subsection (3)(a) is subject to a specified

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restriction, condition or limitation which may make the value of

 

 

 
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