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10 Jun 2008 : Column 178W—continued
Tax Allowances: Pensions
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax relief on pension contributions was claimed at (a) the basic rate and (b) a higher rate in the last financial year for which figures are available. [209763]
Kitty Ussher: Latest estimates of the tax relief on pension contributions are available in Table 7.9 on Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs website at:
A break down of tax relief on individual and employee contributions broken down by the individual's marginal tax rate is provided in the following table. This distribution relates to financial year 2005-06, the latest for which data are available.
| Marginal income tax rate | Percentage of tax relief |
| Note: This distribution is based on the 2005-06 Survey of Personal Incomes. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5 per cent. | |
It is not possible to provide such a breakdown for employer contributions.
Taxation: Aviation
Norman Baker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason the proposed aviation duty is predicated on aircraft weight; and what consideration was given to its predication on aircraft emissions. [209978]
Angela Eagle: Details of the Government's thinking on this issue were clearly set out in chapter 2 of the consultation document ‘Aviation duty: a consultation’, published on 31 March 2008.
The maximum take-off weight of an aircraft was put forward as the lead option as it has been shown to be a reasonable proxy of aircraft emissions as seen in graph 2.1 of the consultation document.
The formal consultation period closed on 24 April and HM Treasury is currently analysing the over 160 responses received, before the Chancellor announces the final design details in the autumn.
VAT: Safety Belts
Norman Baker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to extend to child restraint bases used with standard ISOFIX points the same reduced rate of VAT applicable to the children's car seats designed to operate in tandem with them. [209979]
Jane Kennedy: All taxes are kept under review and changes are announced as part of the normal Budget process.
Windfall Tax: Utilities
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider the merits of introducing a windfall profits tax on energy suppliers. [209514]
Angela Eagle: The Treasury considers any representations on tax issues including tax proposals. Proposals about tax are dealt with by the Chancellor in the usual Budget/pre-Budget report cycle.
Written Questions: Government Responses
Mr. Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to answer question 206123, tabled by the hon. Member for Southend West on 13 May 2008, on vehicle excise duty; what the reason is for the time taken to respond; and if he will make a statement. [208982]
Angela Eagle: I answered the hon. Member’s question on 4 June 2008, Official Report, columns 926-27W.
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Banks: Audit
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will introduce legislation to prohibit auditors of banks from selling consultancy services to their audit clients. [208073]
Mr. Thomas: The provision of consultancy services to audit clients is already regulated in two ways:
by the Ethical Standards of the Auditing Practices Board, which auditors are required to follow. These standards were introduced following the review of accounting and audit regulation after Enron and other corporate scandals earlier in the decade. The standards require auditors to adopt safeguards to mitigate any threats to their objectivity which might result from their providing consultancy services, or to refrain from providing the services. In April 2008 the Auditing Practices Board concluded a review of the Ethical Standards which showed broad support for continuing with this overall approach.
by the requirement on companies to disclose in their annual accounts any sums paid to auditors for non-audit services.
I therefore, have no plans to introduce further changes to the above rules.
Departmental Orders and Regulations
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many statutory instruments have been (a) made and (b) revoked by Ministers in his Department and its predecessor since 1997. [204772]
Mr. Thomas: Figures(1) for the period 1998 to 30 April 2008 show that a total of 1,328 statutory instruments were made by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and its predecessor.
Figures for 1997 are unavailable and the information for 1998 may comprise only partial details of statutory instruments made during that year. In addition the Department made 23 Orders in Counsel(2) during the period 2003 - 30 April 2008.
Figures for Orders in Council made prior to 2003 and statutory instruments revoked since 1997 are not held centrally and could only be obtains at disproportionate cost.
(1) Office of Public Sector Information
(2 )Departmental records
Departmental Pay
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much was paid in end-of-year performance bonuses to (a) all staff and (b) staff at senior civil service level in (i) his Department and (ii) its agencies in the 2007-08 financial year; and how many payments were made. [207470]
Mr. Thomas: The former Department of Trade and Industry (up to June 2007) and the Department for Business, Enterprise, and Regulatory Reform awarded end-year performance awards to highly successful performers as part of the annual pay award.
Based on the information available, in the 2007-08 financial year, the total amount of annual performance awards is in the following table.
| Financial year( 1 ) 2007-08 | |
| (1) Financial year running from 1 April to 31 March. (2) Includes staff who were transferred from DTI to DIUS as part of the June 2007 Machinery of Government changes as these staff received a DTI/BERR pay award in 2007. Does not include those staff transferred into BERR from Cabinet Office and the Department for Communities and Local Government as these staff received Cabinet Office and DCLG pay awards respectively in 2007. Notes: 1. The annual performance awards are paid on a non-consolidated, non-pensionable basis and do not increase the Department's pay-bill costs each year. For permanent members of the senior civil service, performance awards are a non-consolidated, non-pensionable element of the overall remuneration package and range in size from 0 per cent. to 15 per cent. of base pay. For the SCS the senior salaries review body determines the level of expenditure to cover bonuses. 2. Performance awards made up 1.5 per cent. of the Department’s pay bill. | |
Departmental Postal Services
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much his Department spent on sending mail overseas in each year since 2001, broken down by delivery company. [208509]
Mr. Thomas: The question requires information from a number of different sources which could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Directors: Disqualification
Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many disqualification undertakings have been received by his Department from company directors since 1 April 2003. [206709]
Mr. McFadden: The number of disqualification undertakings since 1 April 2003 is:
| Number | |
Members: Correspondence
John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when he plans to reply to the letters of 5 March 2008, 9 April 2008 and 9 May 2008 from the hon. Member for Weston-Super-Mare regarding a constituent, Mr Michael Rogers; and what the reasons for the time taken to reply are. [208417]
Mr. Thomas: My noble Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Competitiveness, responded on 28 May, the delay in responding was due to an administrative error.
Post Offices: Closures
Mr. Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment criteria has been used by the Post Office to produce branch closure proposals in Copeland. [198152]
Mr. McFadden: Post Office Ltd., in developing its post office closure proposals, is required to meet the access criteria requirements, to take account of local geography and to consider a range of factors, including the local demographics, availability of public transport, alternative access to key post office services and the impact of closures on local economies. Under the Cumbria area plan proposals, on which public consultation started on 18 March and closed on 27 May, there would be no change to the office currently used by 89.6 per cent. of customers and in total 98.5 per cent. would see no change or be within one mile by road of an alternative branch. Decisions are scheduled to be announced on 18 June.
Mrs. Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many post offices in Halifax were closed between 1992 and 1997. [207789]
Mr. McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Postal Services
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many operational post boxes there were for use by the general public in each year since 1997. [208082]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 2 June 2008]: This is an operational matter for which Royal Mail has direct responsibility. I have therefore asked the chief executive of Royal Mail, Adam Crozier, to provide a direct reply to the hon. Member.
A copy of the response will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Tattooing: Complaints
Ms Hewitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many complaints his Department has received from consumers dissatisfied with the service they received from an organisation offering tattoos and/or tattoo removals in the last three years. [207840]
Mr. Thomas: Consumer Direct, a Government backed telephone and on-line advice service has recorded 517 complaints from consumers relating to businesses offering tattoos and body piercing between 1 January 2005 and 31 December 2007.
BERR do not maintain a separate database of consumer complaints about traders.
Trade: Royal Visits
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform which countries have been visited by HRH Prince Andrew in his role as UK Special Representative for Trade and Investment since he took up his position; what the dates were of each visit; what mode of transport he used to travel to and from each country; and how many (a) officials and (b) other people accompanied him on each. [205890]
Mr. Thomas [holding answer 15 May 2008]: HRH the Duke of York took up his role as the UK Special Representative for International Trade and Investment on 1 October 2001. Details of all countries visited by the Duke of York in this role can be found either at:
(for overseas visits in 2006 to present day) or for visits dating back to 2001 from the Court Circular on the British Monarchy's main site at:
The mode of transport used for travel to and from each visit is a decision for the Royal Household based on advice from the Royal Travel Office.
It is a decision for the Royal Household who accompanies the Duke of York.
It is usual for locally based officials to accompany the Duke of York on visits in their markets.
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