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7 July 2009 : Column 777W—continued
Fuels
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which local authorities have been fined by HM Revenue and Customs since January 2008 for using red diesel in local authority tractors and agricultural vehicles. [284927]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Where HMRC deals with irregularities other than by prosecution, such as by assessment of duty, it is not its practice to publish the details of individual cases. The total duty assessed in cases of misuse of red diesel, and the number of cases where misuse has been detected, are published in HMRC Autumn Performance Reports at:
Home Information Packs: VAT
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) on which elements of home information packs valued added tax is levied; [284006]
(2) what his most recent estimate is of the revenue which has accrued to the Exchequer from value added tax on home information packs. [284075]
Mr. Timms: The normal VAT liability rules apply when the constituent parts of a home information pack (HIP) are purchased from a VAT registered business. VAT will usually be chargeable, although Land Registry search fees are normally VAT free.
VAT will also be due on any fee charged by a VAT registered agent in connection with the compilation of a HIP.
Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs do not collect data on VAT raised from individual goods and services.
Housing: Valuation
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the Answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst of 6 November 2008, Official Report, column 682W, on housing: valuation, in which locality in the valuation area of Westminster the dwelling with billing authority reference T2902011000007 is located. [284275]
Mr. Timms: As at 1 July 2009, the Valuation Office Agency has this dwelling in Locality 37 of Westminster Billing Authority. The Billing Authorities of Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea comprise a single valuation area.
Local Taxation
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) with reference to the Valuation Office Agency’s performance target on value for money from local taxation, what methodology is used to calculate yield from local taxation; [283996]
(2) what targets have been set for the Valuation Office Agency on value for money in relation to (a) local taxation and (b) inheritance tax; when those targets were set; and how performance against those targets is measured. [284078]
Mr. Timms: I announced the key performance indicators and targets for the Valuation Office Agency for 2009-10 to the House by written ministerial statement on 10 June 2009. They include:
To improve overall value for money on local taxation work by 3 per cent.
To improve value for money on inheritance tax work for HMRC by 5 per cent.
Value for money for local taxation work is calculated as a weighted index of measures covering timeliness, quality and volume of work divided by total cost.
That for inheritance tax work is measured by comparing the Agency’s costs with the estimated tax achieved. In managing its performance against this indicator, the Agency targets resources to those cases requiring adjustment to ensure that the correct amount of tax due is paid.
Members: Correspondence
Mr. Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 23 April 2009, Official Report, column 796W, on Members: correspondence, when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Chelmsford of 2 February 2009 on his constituent Dr Paul Carslake; and what the reason is for the time taken to reply. [278621]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry [holding answer 8 June 2009]: A reply has been sent to the hon. Member.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letter of 23 April 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr K Williams. [280433]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply has been sent to the right hon. Member.
Money Laundering
Ms Keeble: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of anti-money laundering legislation in preventing people with connections with corrupt regimes having accounts with regulated banks; [284270]
(2) what recent discussions his Department has had with the Financial Services Authority on politically-exposed persons and bank accounts operated by regulated institutions. [284263]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The UK has a robust anti-money laundering regime. When last evaluated by the Financial Action Task Force, the international anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing standard-setting body, the UK achieved one of the highest overall compliance ratings of any country.
Since then we have continued to improve the effectiveness of the UK's regime; in particular, through the introduction in December 2007 of new money laundering regulations. These regulations require banks, and other regulated businesses, to undertake comprehensive customer due diligence checks, including identifying any beneficial owners involved. Enhanced due diligence procedures are required in higher-risk situations, including where the client is a politically exposed person.
HM Treasury has regular discussions on the effectiveness of the money laundering regulations with business stakeholders and public partners, such as the FSA, and in the specific case of politically exposed persons (PEP's), also with the Department for International Development. Discussions on PEPs are held both bilaterally and in several fora, including the Money Laundering Advisory Committee, that bring together cross-sector and cross-Whitehall participants.
Non-domestic Rates
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what methodology the Valuation Office Agency uses to calculate the rateable value of supermarket car parking spaces for the 2010 rates revaluation. [283844]
Mr. Timms: Supermarket car parking spaces will usually be assessed and valued as part of a supermarket rather than separately, having regard to the level of rents paid on it and other supermarkets. For the 2010 rates revaluation, the level of rent as at 1 April 2008 will be adopted.
Non-Domestic Rates
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Valuation Office Agency holds records of the location of each mobile telephone mast for the purposes of the 2010 rates revaluation; and what data mobile telephone operators are required to provide to the Agency. [284045]
Mr. Timms: The Valuation Office holds records of the location of every mobile phone mast it has identified and assessed to non-domestic rates in England and Wales in respect of the current 2005 rating lists. The 2010 Revaluation will be based on the current assessments identified on the 2005 rating list and any new assessments raised before 1 April 2010.
Once a valuation officer has identified the location and address of a mobile phone mast it can send a statutory request under paragraph 5 of schedule 9 to the Local Government Finance Act 1988, as amended, requesting specified information from the operator in order to raise a non-domestic rating assessment. The data requested include tenure and site sharing information.
Non-Domestic Rates: Bingo
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance has been issued to bingo operators on whether the prohibition of smoking in public places represents a material change of circumstance for the purposes of the calculation of business rates levied on bingo halls. [284286]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) held discussions with the professional advisers to the bingo industry prior to the introduction of the ban on smoking in public places in April 2007 (in Wales) and July 2007 (in England).
Once the ban had been agreed as a material change of circumstance, the VOA notified the Bingo Association in writing on 27 November 2008 that the rating assessments for all the bingo halls in England and Wales would be reviewed following the introduction of the ban.
Private Finance Initiative: Hertfordshire
Mike Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the efficiency of schemes under the private finance initiative in (a) Hemel Hempstead, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire. [284323]
Ian Pearson: All local authority PFI projects seeking PFI credits are subject to an assessment by the Projects Review Group (PRG), which is chaired by HM Treasury.
Minutes of the PRG meetings held in 2008 and 2009 can be found on the HM Treasury website at:
A list of all signed PFI projects can be found on the HM Treasury website at:
Public Expenditure
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the evidence given by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to the House of Lords Committee on the Barnett Formula on 17 June 2009, if he will place in the Library a copy of the study of the relative expenditure needs of the four countries of the United Kingdom carried out in 1984. [283513]
Mr. Byrne: Today, I have placed a copy of the 1984 update to the Needs Assessment Study in the Library of the House.
Public Expenditure: Wales
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the expenditure proposals contained in Annex A of the Building Britain's Future document will have a Barnett consequential for Wales. [283976]
Mr. Byrne: The funding announced in ‘Building Britain's Future’ is based on existing provision, including reprioritisation, and therefore does not attract Barnett consequentials.
Quantitative Easing
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the scale of quantitative easing undertaken by the (a) US Federal Reserve and (b) European Central Bank. [283586]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Monetary policy in the euro-area and United States are matters for the European Central Bank and Federal Reserve respectively. It is not for the Government to comment on their specific policy decisions.
Revenue and Customs: Training
Damian Green: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many days’ training has been given on average to a front line customs officer on the introduction of the points-based immigration system. [282988]
Mr. Woolas: On average frontline Border Force Officers complete at least three quarters of a day dedicated to training on the points based system.
Social Rented Housing
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what use the Valuation Office Agency (a) has made and (b) plans to make of data on social housing gathered by the National Register of Social Housing. [284480]
Mr. Timms: The Valuation Office Agency has used postcode level information from the National Register of Social Housing (NRoSH) database, in conjunction with its own data, to help identify social housing. The VOA has no current plans to use NRoSH data.
Valuation Office: Freedom of Information
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 12 March 2009, Official Report, column 772W, on the Valuation Office: freedom of information, and the subsequent deposited paper DEP2009-1797, if he will publish for each of the listed (a) freedom of information and (b) environmental information regulation requests details of the information requested. [283970]
Mr. Timms: The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Valuation Office: Marketing
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans the Valuation Office Agency has to replace its world class branding. [284079]
Mr. Timms: The Valuation Office Agency’s ambition, set out in its Forward Plan for 2009-12, published on its website at
is to be recognised both nationally and internationally for its expertise, achievement and innovation in the
valuation services it provides. As the recent Framework Review recognised (report published on the HMRC website) at
the VOA has been successfully striving to improve its customer service, consistent with HM Government’s ambition to provide world class public services. The recommendation in the Framework Review report regarding the use of the term “world class” relates to ensuring that all staff in the Agency and its stakeholders properly understand its aims. This and other recommendations made by the Framework Review are currently being considered.
Valuation: Housing
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what factors are taken into account by the Valuation Office Agency when deciding whether to allocate a dwelling an SC value significant code. [284762]
Mr. Timms: The value significant code SC may be used to indicate that a property was in poor state of repair when sold—to the extent that this affected the value of the property at the date of sale. The Valuation Office Agency does not provide specific guidance to its staff on when to use the code—it is a matter of local knowledge and judgment. General guidance on the use of all its dwelling-house codes is published on the VOA’s website at:
Water: Meters
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to paragraph 7.7 of the Minutes of the 49th Meeting of the Steering Committee on Harmonisation (Practice and Procedure) between England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland of 6-7 May 2009, which EU directive is expected to require all properties to have water meters. [284142]
Mr. Timms: Paragraph 7.7 is a record of what was stated by the Republic of Ireland representative. No EU directive is expected to require UK properties to have water meters.
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