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29 Nov 2007 : Column 586W—continued
Departmental Telephone Services
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what information his Department collects and monitors in relation to the telephone contact centres for which his Department is responsible; [166542]
(2) which telephone contact centres are the responsibility of his Department; what mechanisms are in place to monitor their effectiveness; and how many people have been employed in each of those centres in each year since they were established. [166541]
Jane Kennedy: HMRC currently operates 21 contact centres through its centrally managed customer contact directorate. These handle the bulk of inbound customer initiated telephone calls. Additionally there remain a number of helplines and back office telephony services that are operated outside of this contact centre network.
The effectiveness of the HMRC contact centre operations is monitored through standard departmental management arrangements, through customer satisfaction surveys, through membership of the industry-wide Contact Centre Association and by active participation in the recently established Contact Council, set up following publication of Sir David Varney's report: “Service Transformation: a Better Service For Citizens and Businesses, a Better Deal for Taxpayers” published alongside the 2006 pre-Budget report and available at
With regard to staff numbers, I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 26 July 2007, Official Report , column 1453W.
HMRC collects and monitors a wide range of information in respect of its contact centre operations including call volumes, caller demand, service levels achieved and customer satisfaction survey results.
Productivity: Public Sector
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what revisions to the definition of public sector productivity there have been since 1997; and how many times this definition has changed since 1997. [166746]
Andy Burnham: Productivity is the relationship between inputs and outputs and the measurement of public sector output and therefore of public sector productivity is technically complex. The Atkinson review was set up by the National Statistician to independently review the future development of measures of government output, productivity and associated price indices. Following the Review's report in 2005 the National Statistician set up within the Office of National Statistics (ONS) the UK centre for the Measurement of Government Activity (UKCeMGA) to take forward the review's findings. This work is continuing and regular progress reports are published by UKCeMGA on their website.
Revenue and Customs: ICT
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for how long the computer system in the HM Revenue and Customs office at Bradford has been out of operation; what the reasons were for the failure of the system; and what steps he is taking to ensure that such failures are not repeated. [167969]
Jane Kennedy: According to our records, the computer system in the HM Revenue and Customs office in Bradford is not out of operation.
Revenue and Customs: Prosecutions
Mr. Gauke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many criminal prosecutions were brought against HM Revenue and Customs staff for matters relating to their employment in the last year for which figures are available. [168051]
Jane Kennedy: HM Revenue and Customs currently has around 87,000 staff. In the last financial year commencing 1 April 2006 and ending 31 March 2007, 15 criminal prosecutions were completed against HM Revenue and Customs staff for matters relating to their employment.
Tax Allowances: Agriculture
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what value of roll-over relief was claimed in respect of gains made on agricultural land in the latest year for which figures are available. [168757]
Jane Kennedy: The information requested is not available
Taxation: Domicil
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of non-domicile tax status personnel currently associated with the UK for at least part of the year; how many have incomes of (a) less than £100,000, (b) £100 to 500,000, (c) £500,000 to £1 million, (d) £1 to 5 million, (e) £5 to 20 million, (f) £20 to 50 million, (g) £50 to 100 million and (h) in excess of £100 million; and what revenue would be raised if a tax were applied of (i) 40 per cent. to each category below £1 million, (ii) 50 per cent. to each category between £1 million and £5 million and (iii) 60 per cent. on each category above £5 million. [166164]
Jane Kennedy [holding answer 20 November 2007]: Information on how long non-domiciled individuals are present in the UK within a particular year is not available.
Information is only available on the numbers of individuals indicating non-domicile status on their self assessment (SA) returns. The last full year's SA data relate to 2004-05, in which there were 115,000 indicating non-domicile status. HMRC's live systems show the latest figure (as at August 2007) for 2005-06 is 114,000 individuals.
Information on worldwide incomes for non-domiciles is not available. A breakdown by UK taxable income of the individuals who indicated non-domicile status through SA tax returns in 2005-06 is as follows (data as at April 2007).
| Total taxable income (lower limit) | Numbers indicating non-domicile status |
| Note: This total number is smaller than reported above as more returns were processed between April and August 2007. Income bands above £5 million have been grouped together to protect tax payer confidentiality. | |
The total UK tax liability of those indicating non-domicile status in 2005-06 (as at April 2007) was £3.9 billion. Applying tax rates of (i) 40 per cent. to individuals with less than £1 million UK taxable income, (ii) 50 per cent. to individuals with between £1 million and £5 million UK taxable income and (iii) 60 per cent. to individuals with £5 million taxable income or more in 2005-06 would have raised around £6.3 billion, i.e. an additional £2.4 billion. This is a theoretical maximum, not taking into account personal allowances, other tax rates or behavioural effects, such as rearranging tax affairs to take more income out of UK tax, reducing hours worked or leaving the UK altogether.
Dr. Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will estimate the average earnings of those registered as non-domiciled in the UK; [166352]
(2) how many and what proportion of non-domiciles for taxation purposes have been resident in the UK for more than 10 years. [166354]
Jane Kennedy: Information is only available for individuals indicating non-domicile status on their self assessment (SA) returns. Income data for such individuals are only available annually. For 2005-06 these data (as at April 2007) included 111,000 individuals, of whom 65,000 declared UK employment income averaging approximately £140,000. In addition, 13,000 declared foreign source employment income averaging approximately £60,000.
Based on a small scale sampling exercise in 2004 covering cases processed by HMRC expatriate and complex personal return teams, it has been estimated that around 10,000 individuals indicating non-domicile status per year have been resident in the UK for more than 10 years. This represents approximately 9 per cent. of the 115,000 individuals indicating non-domicile status in 2004-05, the last full year of data.
VAT: Game Birds
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much unpaid VAT was (a) detected and (b) reclaimed by the HM Revenue and Customs Game Shooting Industry National Pilot Project; [168915]
(2) how much unpaid income tax has been recovered through the HM Revenue and Customs Game Shooting Industry National Pilot Project; [168916]
(3) what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the HM Revenue and Customs Game Shooting Industry National Pilot Project. [168917]
Jane Kennedy: The shoot project is ongoing. To date VAT assessments have been issued for £6 million. This figure is expected to double within the lifetime of the project.
The project began in HM Customs and Excise as a VAT initiative. However, HMRC always seeks to take a cross tax view of initiatives when possible. Earlier this year the VAT results then available were reviewed for signs of any additional income tax liability. Risks of underpaid income tax have only been identified in a small proportion of the cases reviewed and as yet no income tax has been recovered
No assessment of the effectiveness of the shoot project has been made.
Welfare Tax Credits
Mr. Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 12 November 2007, Official Report, column 25W, on welfare tax credits, how many full-time equivalent staff at HM Customs and Revenue are working to complete the review of tax credits awards from 2003 to 2006. [166412]
Jane Kennedy [holding answer 20 November 2007]: Around 130 Tax Credit Office staff are currently working directly on the cases arising from this exercise. As the review progresses, the Tax Credit Office will assign resources so that these awards are put on a sound footing as soon as is practicable. HMRC remain committed to improving the services they provide to tax credits customers.
Mr. Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 12 November 2007, Official Report, column 25W, on welfare tax credits, how many tax credits claimants are subject to reduced payments as a consequence of alleged over payments from 2003 to 2006 which are now the subject of the review by HM Customs and Revenue. [166413]
Jane Kennedy [holding answer 20 November 2007]: The number of households whose current tax credits awards are reduced to recover an overpayment that is the subject of this review is not readily available, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The awards which are being reviewed, however, do accurately reflect the households' circumstances at the time the original decision was made. The process by which HM Revenue and Customs took the relevant new information into account was not correct. The review will simply put the affected awards on the proper administrative footing, and the majority of those affected by the review will not see any impact on their tax credits award.
Welfare Tax Credits: EC Nationals
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the amount of (a) working tax credit and (b) child tax credit overpaid to A8 nationals working in the UK in the last 12 months. [167651]
Jane Kennedy: The information requested is not available.
Welfare Tax Credits: Overpayments
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer from how many declared bankrupts the Tax Credit Office has reclaimed tax credit overpayments. [167647]
Jane Kennedy: Since May 2004 HM Revenue and Customs is aware of around 1,500 cases where claimants have notified the Department that they are bankrupt.
Information is not available for the number of claimants who have notified the Department they are bankrupt but are continuing to pay back an overpayment of tax credits.
If any claimant disputes HMRC's decision to recover an overpayment from them, then HMRC will suspend the recovery of the overpaid tax credits while the reasons for the dispute are looked into.
Prime Minister
Anti-Semitism
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister for what reasons question 167389 on the cross-Government working group on anti-semitism, was transferred to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government; what criteria he uses when deciding to transfer a question; how many questions tabled to him have been transferred to other Government Ministers since June 2007; and if he will make a statement. [169532]
The Prime Minister: Questions are answered by the responsible Minister. Details of transfers can be found in the daily ‘Questions Book’, copies of which are available in the Vote Office.
Departmental Accountability
Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answers of 19 November 2007, Official Report, columns 576-77W, on departmental accountability, for what reasons he did not provide the information requested in the questions tabled. [169624]
The Prime Minister: I have nothing further to add to the answer I gave the hon. Member on 19 November 2007, Official Report, columns 576-77W.
Diego Garcia: USA
Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 19 November 2007, Official Report, column 577W, on Diego Garcia: USA, for what reasons he did not state whether he would ensure a Parliamentary debate before any decision is taken on the use of Diego Garcia by the US Administration. [169623]
The Prime Minister: I have nothing further to add to the answer I gave the hon. Member on 19 November 2007, Official Report, column 577W.
Joint Intelligence Committee
Harry Cohen: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to publish the names of attenders of Joint Intelligence Committee meetings. [167336]
The Prime Minister: Details of the membership of the Joint Intelligence Committee can be found on the UK Intelligence Community Online website at:
A copy of this webpage has been placed in the Library of the House.
Ministerial Changes: Ministry of Defence
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister what additional cost to the public purse there will be from the appointment of Baroness Taylor of Bolton to replace Lord Drayson as Minister of State for Defence Equipment and Support; and if he will make a statement. [165546]
The Prime Minister: Ministerial salaries are paid in accordance with the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act 1975. The Act limits the number of ministerial salaries to 109.
NHS
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) agenda, (b) minutes and (c) action points of the meeting held by his predecessor on 17 October 2006 with strategic health authority chief executives. [167839]
The Prime Minister: Details of this meeting can be found on the Number 10 website at
A copy of this webpage has been placed in the Library of the House.
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