| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
8 Mar 2004 : Column 1271W—continued
Debt Relief
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether sufficient funds are available from the money committed by the G8 in Canada in 2002 for the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries fund for top-up debt relief to provide the sum required for Ethiopia to meet the sustainable debt to export ratio set by the World Bank. [158574]
John Healey: Following the enhancement of the HIPC Initiative in 1999, it became apparent that some countries would reach Completion Point with deteriorated debt indicators compared to the projections at Decision Point. As a result, the Initiative provides the option of additional debt relief, or 'topping-up', at Completion Point, beyond that committed at Decision Point, when exceptional and exogenous factors have caused a substantial deterioration in a country's long-term debt sustainability. At the G8 summit in Kananaskis, leaders agreed to fund the financing shortfall in the HIPC Trust Fund, pledging up to an extra US $1 billion, part of which would be used to cover additional costs of topping up.
Ethiopia is shortly expected to reach its HIPC Completion Point with a debt-to-export ratio in excess of the 150 per cent. target set by the IMF and World Bank, and so should be eligible for consideration for topping up. The UK has been working closely with the Ethiopian government and supports the case for topping up. The potential costs have not been finalised, but it is expected that the resources pledged in 2002 will cover the costs for the HIPC Trust Fund.
8 Mar 2004 : Column 1272W
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the paper, prepared by the World Bank on Completion Point for Ethiopia, has been presented to the Boards of the (a) World Bank and (b) Interntional Monetary Fund. [158576]
John Healey: Ethiopia is expected to reach Completion Point in the HIPC Initiative shortly. The Completion Point paper has yet to be presented to the Boards of either the World Bank or the IMF.
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the date by which the (a) World Bank and (b) International Monetary Fund will decide on the Completion Point for Ethiopia. [158592]
John Healey: The Executive Boards of the World Bank and the IMF were scheduled to discuss Ethiopia's Completion Point at the end of February 2004. New dates for these meetings are expected to be set shortly. The UK has been working closely with the Ethiopian government and supports the case for topping up Ethiopia's debt relief at Completion Point.
Equitable Life
Lady Hermon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date he expects to publish the Penrose Report on Equitable Life. [158873]
Norman Lamb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will publish the Penrose Report. [159633]
Ruth Kelly: The Penrose Report on Equitable Life is being published today in full, copies of which are available in the Library of the House (HC 290).
EU Savings Directive
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect of the EU Savings Directive on UK dependent territories. [159421]
Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Ribble Valley (Mr. Evans) on 12 December 2002 Official Report, column 475W.
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the status is of the EU Savings Directive; and whether he intends to implement it in the (a) UK and (b) dependent territories before ensuring that it applies equally in other states with a similar financial services industry. [159422]
Dawn Primarolo: The EU Savings Directive was adopted by ECOFIN on the 3 June 2003. The proposed commencement date of 1 January 2005 in the Directive is contingent on agreements being in place with Switzerland, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco, and San Marino to apply from the same date equivalent measures as in the Directive, and on arrangements being in place with the associated and dependent territories listed in Article 17 of the Directive to apply from the same date the same measures as in the Directive.
8 Mar 2004 : Column 1273W
Fuel Duty
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact on air quality of the increase in fuel duty on liquefied petroleum gas in the Pre-Budget Report 2003. [158820]
John Healey: I refer the hon. Lady to the reply I gave on 1 March to the hon. Member for Castle Point (Bob Spink) Official Report, column 690W.
National Statistics
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the death rates from (a) cancer and (b) coronary heart disease were in (i) the North West and (ii) each Lancashire constituency or district in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [158825]
Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Lindsay Hoyle dated 8 March 2004:
- As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question concerning what the latest death rates from (a) cancer and (b) coronary heart disease are in (i) the North West and (ii) in each Lancashire constituency or district in each of the last three years for which figures are available. (158825)
- The latest year for which the figures requested are available is 2002 and these are given, with figures for 2000 and 2001, in the attached table.
(8) Rates per 100,000 population standardised to the European Standard Population.
(9) The cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (1CD-9) for 2000, and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) for 2001–2002. The codes used are listed below:
Cancer (malignant neoplasms)—/CD-9 140–208; ICD-10 COO-C97;
Coronary Heart Disease—1CD-9 410–414; ICD-10 120–125.
(10) Usual residents of these areas.
(11) The former county of Lancashire comprises the current county and the unitary authorities of Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool.
(12) Deaths occurring in the calendar years 2000 to 2002.
8 Mar 2004 : Column 1274W
Private Schools
Mr. Byers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the revenue which would be raised if VAT were to be applied to private school fees. [159785]
John Healey: The provision of education in return for fees in private schools is exempt from VAT, in accordance with the requirements of the European Union VAT Directives on which UK VAT law is based.
The cost of the VAT exemption for private education, as last published in the Tax ready reckoner and tax reliefs' in December 2003, was estimated at £150 million.
Stamp Duty
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the case for amending the stamp duty brackets in this year's Budget. [158656]
Ruth Kelly: All aspects of the tax system are kept under review as part of the annual budget process.
Temporary Staff
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff the Department employs on a temporary basis through employment agencies; what percentage this is of total staff employed; and how much the Department paid employment agencies to supply temporary staff in (a) 2001–02, (b) 2002–03 and (c) 2003–04 to the most recent date for which figures are available. [158240]
Ruth Kelly: HM Treasury presently employs around 30 staff at any one time through employment agencies, some 3 per cent. of the total employed. Payments to such agencies were £788,000 in 2001–02; £927,000 in 2002–03; and £983,000 in the first 11 months of 2003–04.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |