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Written Answers to Questions
Friday 28 October 2005
TREASURY
Correspondence
Mike Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to improve the Department's performance in replying to correspondence from members of the public. [21910]
John Healey: HM Treasury aims to reply to correspondence from the public within 15 working days of receipt. Against that target, performance has improved from 36 per cent. in 1999–2000 to 79 per cent. in 2004–05. This has been achieved through a mix of improving IT support, management information and more robust targeting and monitoring. Systems and processes are continuously under review to identify areas for further improvements.
Mike Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to improve the Department's performance in replying to hon. Members' correspondence. [21911]
John Healey: HM Treasury aims to reply to hon. Members' correspondence within 15 working days of receipt. Against that target, performance has improved from 47 per cent. in 1999–2000 to 86 per cent. in 2004–05. This has been achieved through a mix of improving IT support, management information and more robust targeting and monitoring. Systems and processes are continuously under review to identify areas for further improvements.
Environmental Taxes
Dr. Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to evaluate the effectiveness of environmental taxes to inform further policy development on the Government's sustainable development strategy, with particular reference to climate change. [22030]
John Healey:
Chapter 7 of Budget 2005, Investing for our future: Fairness and opportunity for Britain's hard-working families", HC 372 contained assessments of all the main environmental taxes. The Government also published at Budget 2005 an independent evaluation of the Climate Change levy (CCL), Modelling the initial effects of the climate change levy", by Cambridge Econometrics at Budget 2005 which is available at www.hmrc.gov.uk The Climate Change Programme Review, launched by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in September 2004 is looking at Government policies more widely to tackle climate change and aims to report by the end of the year.
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London Underground
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to meet the Mayor of London to discuss the renegotiation of the public-private partnership deal for the London underground; and if he will make a statement. [21866]
John Healey: This is a matter for the Department of Transport. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport made a statement last week.
Railways (Employment)
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people are employed in the rail sector in each Government region; and if he will make a statement. [21867]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the national statistician who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell to Lynne Featherstone, dated 28 October 2005:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about employment in the rail sector. (21867)
The attached table contains information from the Annual Business Inquiry on the number of employee jobs in the rail sector in each Government office region in 2003, the latest year for which information is available. The figures for the North East region have been combined with those for Yorkshire and the Humber in order to avoid the potential disclosure of information supplied under the Statistics of Trade Act.
The rail sector has been defined to include Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes 35.20 (manufacture of railway and tramway locomotives and rolling stock) and 60.10 (transport via railways). Other rail sector employee jobs, for example those in maintenance and repair of rolling stock, transportation via metro systems and passenger terminal activities are excluded as they cannot be identified separately from jobs in other sectors.
(1)Rail sector defined as SIC codes 35.20 and 60.10.
(2)This region is formed by combining figures for the North East and those for Yorkshire and the Humber to avoid publishing disclosive data.
Source:
Annual Business Inquiry (2003).
Sustainable Development
Dr. Cable:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of (a) new building work and (b) refurbishment of buildings of (i) his Department
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and (ii) agencies of his Department has since May 1997 been subject to environmental assessment using BREEAM and BREEAM98. [21996]
John Healey: The HM Treasury building at 1 Horse Guards Road, London was assessed as excellent" under BREEAM 98. The HM Revenue and Customs refurbishment of 100 Parliament Street was rated as very good" under BREEAM 2003. The Office of Government Commerce have BREAAM assessments at good" or above in place for 67 per cent. of their estate.
HM Revenue and Customs do not hold information in the format and covering the time scales requested. Their STEPS PFI contract, which covers the majority of the HMRC estate, includes a requirement that all alternative facilities or refurbishments over £250,000 achieve a very good" or excellent" BREEAM rating.
BREEAM assessments are not held for the Debt Management Office the Government Actuary's Department, Royal Mint or the Office for National Statistics.
Tax Avoidance Schemes
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will undertake investigations into tax avoidance schemes by British arms of accountancy houses which have admitted unlawful conduct in the creation or selling of such schemes in the United States. [22270]
Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer to him of 6 July 2005, Official Report, column 436W, concerning promoters of tax avoidance schemes.
Tax Credits
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of those receiving child care tax credit have had an overpayment in each month since its introduction; and what assessment he has made of the impact of the recovery of overpayments on those receiving child care tax credit. [18868]
Dawn Primarolo: Monthly overpayment figures are not available as information on the number of tax credit awards with overpayments is available only after family incomes and circumstances have been finalised.
Mike Wood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance he has issued to HM Revenue and Customs in relation to dealing with tax credit overpayments since the Paymaster General's statement to the House on 22 June. [19675]
Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Leeds, East (Mr. Mudie), on 26 October 2005, Official Report, column's 368–69W.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will update table 1 on cost of collection (pence per pound collected) from appendix 1, page 150 of the Inland Revenue Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2004 to include the latest data for tax credits for 2004–05. [22419]
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Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 18 October 2005, Official Report, column 949W.
A figure for total tax credits payments made in the financial year 2004–05 can be found in Note 3 to the Trust Statement in the Inland Revenue Annual Report and Accounts for 2004–05.
The Annual Report for HM Revenue and Customs 2004–05 will be published later this year and include an updated cost of collection table for the Inland Revenue showing the 2004–05 figures.
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