---

22 Mar 2005 : Column 710W—continued

Tax (Administration Costs)

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the administration costs associated with each tax and duty were in the last year for which figures are available; and what percentage of revenues raised by each tax and duty was accounted for by administration costs. [222909]

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue's estimated gross administration costs by tax and duty in 2003–04 were as follows.

	£ million
Income tax	1,671.4
Corporation tax	348.5
National insurance contributions	315.3
Petroleum revenue tax	2.1
Capital gains tax	47.4
Inheritance tax	31.4
Stamp taxes	32.6

These taxes are all collected by the Inland Revenue and incur administration costs.
 
22 Mar 2005 : Column 711W
 

The cost of collection of these taxes in 2003–04, expressed as pence per pound collected, is available from Table 1, Appendix 1 of the Inland Revenue Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2004.

HM Customs and Excise does not routinely collect information on the costs of its activities by each tax and duty stream and I am not able therefore to provide the detailed cost information you request. Information on aggregate resource usage against each of the Department's high-level objectives and on the costs of the operations of HM Customs and Excise is available in the published Annual Report and Accounts.

Tax Credits

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many tax credits payments have been calculated and paid manually in each month in the current tax year. [221127]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 14 March 2005]: Around 334,000 such payments were made from April 2004 to February 2005 broken down:

Month	No of Payments (£000)
April 2004	35
May 2004	20
June 2004	20
July 2004	30
August 2004	30
September 2004	30
October 2004	35
November2004	40
December2004	40
January 2005	30
February 2005	35

The allocation of payments to precise payment dates requires a degree of estimation and are therefore rounded to the nearest 5,000.

Mrs. May: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the statistics relating to tax credits, which, since 1997 (a) are no longer collected by his Department and (b) have had the way in which the figures are compiled changed. [221795]

Dawn Primarolo: Tax credits were first introduced in 1999. Therefore prior to this the Inland Revenue did not collect or compile any statistics relating to tax credits. In April 2003, working families tax credit (WFTC) and disabled persons tax credit (DPTC) were replaced by child and working tax credits. Statistics on WFTC and DPTC (for the period 1999–2003) and child and working tax credits (from 2003 onwards) are published on the Inland Revenue website at www.ir.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/menu.htm.

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer in how many cases where compensation has been awarded to a tax credit claimant for overpayment the compensation was worth (a) zero to 5 per cent., (b) 5 to 10 per cent., (c) 10 to 15 per cent., (d) 15 to 20 per cent., (e) 20 to 25 per cent., (f) 25 to 30 per cent., (g) 30 to 35 per cent., (h) 35 to 40 per cent., (i) 45 to 50 per cent. and (j) over 50 per cent. of the total overpayment. [222608]

 
22 Mar 2005 : Column 712W
 

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 18 March 2005]: The information is not available.

John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what criteria are used for charging interest where an individual has been overpaid tax credits. [222713]

Dawn Primarolo: Interest is charged only where an overpayment of tax credits has arisen due to fraud or neglect on the part of the person or persons making the claim.

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many households experienced changes in circumstances resulting in a mid-year adjustment to a tax credits award in 2003–04; and what estimate the Inland Revenue has made of the number of households which are likely to have experienced a change in circumstances in the 2004–05 tax year. [222783]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 21 March 2005]: This information is not available.

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research has been undertaken by the Inland Revenue into the likelihood of claimants reporting changes in circumstances affecting a tax credit award. [222784]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 21 March 2005]: Irefer my right hon. Friend to the HM Treasury Document The Child and Working Tax Credits", The Modernisation of Britain's Tax and Benefit System, Number Ten", April 2002, Chapter 4.

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 14 March 2005, Official Report, column 85W, on tax credits, how many TC 846 forms for the (a) 2003–04 and (b) 2004–05 tax year have been returned. [222789]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 21 March 2005]: The information requested is not available.

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much has been paid out to date for each tax creditin (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) England and (d) Wales; how many households are in receipt of each tax credit in each case; and what the administration costs associated with each tax credit to date are (i) in total and (ii) as a percentage of the expenditure on that tax credit. [222915]

Dawn Primarolo: Total UK payments for working tax credit and child tax credit appear in the Inland Revenue Annual and Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2004. Exact figures for each country are not readily available.

Estimates of the numbers of in-work families in each country receiving working tax credit and child tax credit appear in Child and Working Tax Credits. December 2004". This can be found on the Inland Revenue website at www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/menu.htm

The costs of managing and paying tax credits for 2003–04 are given in the Inland Revenue Annual and Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2004.

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people with income greater than (a) £15,000, (b) £20,000, (c) £25,000 and (d) £30,000 are in receipt
 
22 Mar 2005 : Column 713W
 
of tax credits; what percentage of total expenditure on tax credits has gone to people in each category to date; and if he will make a statement. [222916]

Dawn Primarolo: Child and Working Tax Credits: December 2004" contains analyses of families receiving tax credits at December 2004. It can be found on the Inland Revenue website at www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/menu.htm. Table 6.1 shows an analysis of in-work recipient families by band of income used to taper the awards. Estimates are based on a sample of cases and are subject to sampling uncertainty.

The figures for the bands requested, on the same basis and excluding those with awards tapered to zero at that date, are: Thousands

	Numbers in receipt of tax credit
(a) greater than £15,000	3,112.1
(b) greater than £20,000	2,597.3
(c) greater than £25,000	2,011.4
(d) greater than £30,000	1,388.8

Analyses of the value of awards will be published on 31 May 2005.

John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Inland Revenue expects to correct the payments of working tax credit to Vanessa Bates; and when he expects to reply to the correspondence from the hon. Member for Bassetlaw relating to her case. [222728]

Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 18 March 2005]: TheInland Revenue replied to the hon. Member on 11 January 2005. They will send him a copy of their letter.

On 8 March 2005, the Department wrote to the hon. Member's constituent about her Working Tax Credit (WTC) and has since corrected her payments.

---