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4 Dec 2002 : Column 835W—continued
Monetary Policy Committee
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what advice and instructions the Treasury gave during the last six months to (a) members of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee and (b) their staff on the relevance of house prices to the setting of interest rates; and what advice he has given since his pre-Budget statement. [85222]
Ruth Kelly [holding answer 3 December 2002]: The Chancellor regularly meets with the Governor of the Bank of England to discuss a wide range of issues. The Treasury representative to the MPC and other Treasury officials also regularly discuss economic issues with counterparts in the Bank of England.
The MPC's remit is to meet the target of 2.5 per cent. for RPIX inflation, reconfirmed in the Budget.
Network Rail
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will make a statement on the treatment of Network Rail's financing as Government debt in the national accounts; [85177]
- (2) what plans he has to include the total borrowings of Network Rail in the national accounts as Government debt. [85178]
Mr. Boateng: Network Rail is classified as a private sector corporation in national accounts. Its financial transactions, such as borrowing, are recorded in the financial account of the corporations' sector in national accounts. Its borrowing is not therefore included in the Government sector.
Government provide subsidies and investment grants to the rail industry, mainly to train operating companies. These payments are counted as part of Government expenditure and would add to Government debt if not financed by Government revenue.
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Official Travel
Mr. Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total budget of (a) his Department and (b) its agencies is for official travel in 2002–03. [84928]
Ruth Kelly [holding answer 3 December 2002]: Since 1999, the Government have published an annual list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. The Government have also published on an annual basis the cost of all Ministers' visits overseas. Details of travel undertaken during the period 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002 was published on 24 July 2002, Official Report, column 75W. The cost of Ministers' visits overseas for 2002–03 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the current financial year. Copies of the lists are available in the Libraries of the House.
All travel is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.
Pensions
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his statement of 27 November 2002, Official Report, column 326, whether the proportion of an individual's pension fund that is allowed to be taken as a tax free lump sum on retirement will remain the same. [85223]
Ruth Kelly: The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions will publish the Government's Green Paper on pensions on 17 December 2002. This will include proposals to simplify the tax treatment of pensions.
As confirmed by the Chancellor in his pre-Budget report statement, the tax-free lump sum payment to retirees will remain.
Personal Pensions
Mr. Tynan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the cost to the Treasury of 2 per cent. payments made to appropriate personal pension arrangements was, where contracting out from SERPS commenced between 29 April 1988 and 30 June 1994 and those persons have subsequently been reinstated, as a result of the FSA Review of Personal Pension sales, into an arrangement where the 2 per cent. incentive would not have been payable. [84715]
Ruth Kelly: Individuals who had previously been in a contracted-out occupational scheme for two or more years and were entitled to stay in that scheme but left voluntarily after 5 April 1988 while continuing to work for the same employer would not have qualified for the 2 per cent. incentive when taking up membership of an appropriate personal pension (APP) scheme. If these members were subsequently reinstated into the occupational scheme there could have been no requirement to recover an incentive which had not been paid.
In the other cases, where either the individual had not been in the scheme for two years, or they had never been in the occupational scheme but chose to join the
4 Dec 2002 : Column 837W
appropriate personal pension scheme despite being eligible to join the occupational scheme, the 2 per cent. incentive would have been paid.
Two options were used when reinstating individuals into their occupational pension schemes.
One option involved the removal of the APP arrangement from their NI account and the adjustment of their NI contributions from standard A rate to the contracted-out rate. This action triggered the recovery of the minimum contributions from the APP scheme, which would include the 2 per cent. incentive if paid.
The other option was to leave the APP in place and the APP provider to pay a transfer value to the occupational scheme sufficient to reinstate the relevant years into the occupational scheme. In these cases because the APP was not cancelled no recovery of the 2 per cent. incentive was made.
No statistics have been kept in relation to the amount of 2 per cent. incentive recovered in cases where the individual has been reinstated into an arrangement that would not have qualified for the incentive.
Mr. Tynan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what the cost to the Treasury of the 2 per cent. incentive payments made to appropriate personal pension arrangements was, where contracting out from SERPS commenced between 29 April 1988 and 30 June 1994; [84717]
- (2) what the value of 2 per cent. incentive payments reclaimed by the Treasury was, where they were made to appropriate personal pension arrangements where contracting out from SERPS commenced between 29 April 1988 and 30 June 1994, and where those persons were reinstated, as a result of the FSA Review of Personal Pension sales, into an arrangement where the 2 per cent. incentive would not have been payable. [84716]
Ruth Kelly: The 2 per cent. incentive was payable for tax years 1987–88 to 1992–93 inclusive. If a member of an appropriate personal pension (APP) scheme was entitled to the 2 per cent. incentive it was paid from the tax year their APP arrangement began until 5 April 1993 or the tax year their APP was cancelled if earlier.
Statistics show that the net amount of 2 per cent. incentive paid to APP schemes for this period was £3,180.19 million.
No statistics have been kept in relation to the amount of 2 per cent. incentive recovered in cases where the individual has been reinstated into an arrangement that would not have qualified for the incentive.
Public-Private Finance
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the level of PFI and PPP liabilities over the next 25 years, including contracts to be signed up to the end of financial year 2002–03. [84611]
Mr. Boateng: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given to the hon. Member for Arundel and South Downs (Mr. Flight) on 21 November 2002, Official Report, column 280W.
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Taxation (Non-domicile Rules)
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the amount of foreign investment in the UK resulting from the non-domicile tax rules. [85291]
Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Lady to the reply I gave her on 7 November 2002, Official Report, column 743W. Paragraphs 5.81–82 of the pre-Budget report published on 27 November set out the latest position on the review of the residence and domicile rules.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan and Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum
Pipelines
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans her Department has to conduct a social and environmental impact assessment of (a) the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and (b) the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline. [83729]
Ms Hewitt: Social and environmental impact assessments have been carried out by Environmental Resources Management (ERM) for the three countries that the BTC oil pipeline runs through, and can be found on the BTC website: www. caspiandevelopmentandexport.com. The prospective lenders to BTC Co. are receiving independent advice on environmental and social issues.
ECGD considers relevant impact assessments as part of its due diligence procedures on any application from a UK exporter.
Bank Assets (Holocaust Victims)
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the restitution of assets to holocaust victims in respect of bank assets seized in world war two; how many claims have been made; how many outstanding claims have been referred to Lord Archer of Sandwell's panel; and how much compensation has been awarded. [82956]
Ms Hewitt: The Enemy Property Claims Assessment Panel (EPCAP) assesses claims submitted under the Enemy Property Payment Scheme. The Panel of Assessors has nearly completed the assessment of the 1,097 claims received with over 1,050 already settled.
The amount of compensation paid to claimants now totals almost £8.7 million.
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