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18 Oct 2006 : Column 1258W—continued
Departmental Away Days
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what away days were undertaken by his Department's employees in the last 12 months; and what the (a) location, (b) date, (c) activity, (d) purpose and (e) cost was of each. [94528]
John Healey: Information on individual Treasury teams' away days and similar events is not held centrally and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost. There have been no away days for all Treasury staff in the last 12 months.
Departmental Contracts
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what contracts his Department holds with (a) Capital One Financial Services Group and (b) International Clothing Designs. [94526]
John Healey: The Treasury's records show no contracts with either company.
Departmental Directors
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library his Department’s Director of Policy and Planning’s (a) job description and (b) work objectives. [94536]
John Healey: As set out in HM Treasury Press Notice 61/04 of July 2004, the Director of Policy and Planning has responsibility for short to medium term coordination of policy.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many directors in his Department do not report to a managing director. [94531]
John Healey: There are four Directors in HM Treasury that do not report to a Managing Director (Director General equivalent): the Director of Operations, the Director of Policy and Planning and the Head of Treasury Legal Advisers report to the permanent secretary. The Director of the Government Social Research Unit reports to the Head of the Government Economic Service.
Departmental Electricity Consumption
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his Department’s electricity consumption was in kilowatts in each year since 1997. [94780]
John Healey: For the years 1997-98 to 2002-03, I refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for South Suffolk (Mr. Yeo) on 30 April 2003, Official Report, column 347W. For subsequent years, the information for 1 Horse Guards Road, which contains the Treasury and other occupiers, is as follows:
| Electricity consumption | |
Departmental Flag Flying
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many times his Department’s building at Number 1 Horseguards Parade has flown (a) the Union Jack and (b) the Investors in People flag in the past 12 months. [94465]
John Healey: The Union flag is raised above 1 Horse Guards Road in accordance with the guidelines issued by DCMS and followed by all central Government departments. The Investors in People flag has not been flown in the last 12 months.
Departmental Water Supply
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the water supply to his Department is metered. [94523]
John Healey: The Treasury’s water supply is metered.
EU Accession States
Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the impact of workers from the new European Union member states on the UK economy since 2004. [94929]
Ed Balls: Evidence from the most recent Home Office Accession Monitoring Report (August 2006) suggests that nationals from the Accession 8 countries continue to come to the UK to work, contributing to the success of the UK economy, whilst making very few demands of our welfare system or public services. Overall migrants make a net fiscal contribution to the UK. In many cases, Accession workers are supporting the provision of public services in communities across the UK.
A paper entitled ‘The Impact of Free Movement of Workers from Central and Eastern Europe on the UK Labour Market’ (2006) published by the Department for Work and Pensions, suggests that the impact of migration from the new EU member states has been broadly positive, reflecting the flexibility and speed of adjustment of the UK labour market. The authors also found no discernible statistical evidence supporting the view that the inflow of A8 migrants is contributing to a rise in claimant unemployment in the UK.
Financial Services Authority
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what guidance the Financial Services Authority has provided to mortgage lenders on prudent limits for using automated valuations when making lending decisions on domestic property; [94680]
(2) what advice the Financial Services Authority has provided on the use of automated valuation models for mortgage lending. [94682]
Ed Balls: In the context of the implementation of the Capital Requirements Directive, FSA staff are currently engaged in discussions with representatives of the mortgage lending industry concerning the use of automated valuation models including alongside home information packs. Some initial thinking has been communicated to industry representatives suggesting a flexible approach by the FSA subject to firms’ compliance with the requirements of the directive. In line with the FSA’s principles-based approach, it is not the FSA’s current intention to issue formal guidance on this question. Discussions with industry representatives are continuing.
Funerals
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether casual suppliers of services to a funeral director are responsible for their own tax liabilities. [94707]
Dawn Primarolo: Individuals who supply casual services directly to a funeral director are responsible for their own tax liabilities only if they are providing those services under a contract for services and, therefore, genuinely in business on their own account. Otherwise where there is an employer-employee relationship between the parties then the funeral director is responsible for deduction of income tax and national insurance contributions (NICs) on any payments made to workers.
Where, however, the funeral director has contracted for the provision of a complete service with another firm and they invoice the funeral director for those services, then the firm supplying that service is responsible for determining the correct employment status of its workers and where necessary making the correct tax and NICs deductions.
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether there is an employee-employer relationship between funeral directors and (a) organists, (b) vergers and (c) choirmasters retained by a church to provide services at a funeral. [94708]
Dawn Primarolo: Where the organist, verger or choirmaster is provided by the church and booked by the minister there is no employer-employee relationship between the funeral director and the individual.
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what responsibility a funeral director has in respect of the employment status of (a) organists, (b) pall bearers and (c) other suppliers of services for funerals. [94709]
Dawn Primarolo: Like anyone who engages workers, a funeral director must establish the correct employment status for any individuals who provide services direct to them or their client. Where there is an employer-employee relationship between the parties then the funeral director is responsible for the deduction of income tax and national insurance contributions (NICs). In the case of an organist who is provided by the church and booked by the minister, then the church administrator would be responsible for the deduction of income tax and NICs from any payments received for the organist’s services.
Where the cemetery or crematorium authorities or other providers supply their own uniformed pall bearers and invoice the funeral director for those services then they would not be the employees of the funeral director and he would not be responsible for deduction of income tax and national insurance. Freelance pall bearers on the other hand would only be categorised as having no employer-employee relationship with the funeral director if they were genuinely in business on their own account. These rules may be applied to other suppliers of services for funerals.
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will provide binding opinions on the recent tax inquiries that have been made to his Department by Chiltern Funerals Ltd. [94710]
Dawn Primarolo: Ministers do not generally comment on individual cases. If a taxpayer is unhappy with a view expressed by HM Revenue and Customs, there are various options open to him or her, including appealing to the General or Special Commissioners.
Gym Facilities (HM Treasury)
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether HM Treasury has a gym. [94463]
John Healey: The Treasury has a gym which is run by a private company, Energy Fitness Professionals. Membership is available on a fee-paying basis to Treasury and HMRC staff who are co-located in the Horse Guards Road/Parliament Street building.
Household Expenditure (Residential Extensions)
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether household expenditure on residential extensions to existing homes counts towards the savings ratio. [94672]
John Healey: The information requested fall within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 18 October 2006:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question on whether household expenditure on residential extensions to existing homes counts towards the savings ratio. I am replying in her absence. (94672)
Household expenditure on residential extensions to existing homes does not count towards the savings ratio.
The saving ratio is the percentage of households' disposable income that they have not spent on consumption goods and services, and which they can save. Savings are invested in financial or non-financial assets.
The expenditure by householders on residential extensions is classified as a form of investment (gross fixed capital formation) in the National Accounts, and not as current, or consumption, expenditure. The investment in extensions is therefore a use of savings, and is not a component in the calculation of the household saving ratio.
Methodological information on the National Accounts can be found in the publication ‘United Kingdom National Accounts Concepts, Sources and Methods’ http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=1144&Pos=&ColRank =l&Rank=208
Tables showing accounts for the Household sector can be found within the publication ‘United Kingdom Economic Accounts’, tables A37-41 http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=1904&Pos=&ColRank=l&Rank=422
Immarsat
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total value was of contracts his Department has held with Immarsat in each year since 2001. [94466]
John Healey: The Treasury’s records show no contracts with Immarsat since the beginning of 2002-03. Earlier records could be retrieved and reviewed only at disproportionate cost.
International Clothing Designs/Capital One
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations (a) he and (b) his Department has received from (i) International Clothing Designs and (ii) Capital One Financial Services Group in the last 12 months. [94527]
John Healey: Representations are made to Treasury Ministers and officials on a wide range of issues by a variety of individuals and organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and analysis. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all representations and submissions made to the Treasury.
Ministerial Meetings
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what meetings hosted by (a) the Smith Institute and (b) its subsidiary SI Events Ltd he has attended in the last 12 months. [94525]
John Healey: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide range of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.
Mosques
Mr. Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of mosques in the UK in (a) 1997 and (b) 2001; and what the most recent estimate is. [94360]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 18 October 2006:
As Registrar General for England and Wales, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the estimate is of the number of mosques in the UK in (a) 1997 and (b) 2001; and what the most recent estimate is. (94360)
The data are shown in the table:
| Buildings recorded by the Registrar General as certified places of meeting for religious worship by those professing the Muslim religion, England and Wales, as at 30 June by calendar year | |
| Number | |
| Source: Certifications recorded by the Registrar General for England and Wales under section 2 of the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855. The information requested is not available for Scotland and Northern Ireland. | |
National Institute of Economic and Social Research
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what purposes the Inland Revenue has provided funding to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research in the last 24 months. [94679]
Ed Balls: During the last two years, HMRC has funded the National Institute for Economic and Social Research to develop a model to analyse various aspects of household savings behaviour. This work was funded out of HMRC’s external research programme.
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