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9 Dec 2009 : Column 404W—continued
Rented Housing
Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to introduce a general registration scheme for rented housing. [305569]
Mr. Ian Austin: We consulted over the summer on our response to the independent review of the private rented sector carried out by Julie Rugg and David Rhodes of the Centre for Housing Policy at the University of York. This included proposals for a national register of private landlords. We have been considering the consultation responses received and plan to publish the results shortly.
Treasury
Bookmakers: Betting Shops
Mr. Caborn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has made an estimate of the effect on Exchequer revenues of business transferring from licensed bookmakers to betting exchanges. [305286]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: No assessment has been made. Licensed bookmakers based in the UK pay 15 per cent. general betting duty on their profits. Betting exchanges based in the UK also pay 15 per cent. general betting duty on the commission they charge.
Departmental Written Questions
John Mason: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many questions tabled for answer on a named day his Department received in each of the last 12 months; and to how many such questions his Department provided a substantive answer on the day named. [305371]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers endeavour to answer written parliamentary questions promptly wherever possible. Of the 876 named day questions tabled to the Treasury in the 2008-09 parliamentary session, 672 (77 per cent.) were answered on the day nominated by questioners.
Excise Duties: Oil
Mark Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has made an assessment of the merits of amending the Hydrocarbon Oil (Registered Dealers in Controlled Oil) Regulations 2002 to exempt retailers who provide small amounts of loose controlled oil in customer-owned containers from the provisions of sections 23A(1) and (4) of the Hydrocarbon Oil Duties Act 1979. [304823]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Registered Dealers in Controlled Oil (RDCO) scheme was introduced in 2002, with an exemption for businesses supplying and receiving oil in pre-packaged containers not exceeding 20 litres. All other supplies of controlled oils were included in the RDCO scheme. The scope of this exemption was reviewed in a post-implementation review of the scheme in 2005, and the decision was taken not to extend it. We continue to review the scheme in order to minimise the administrative burdens on businesses.
Financial Services: Advisory Services
Philip Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what legal advice the Financial Services Authority (a) sought and (b) received on its proposals to require requalification by independent financial advisers; and if he will make a statement. [305117]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: As the Financial Services Authority is independent of central Government, I have asked it to respond to the hon. Member directly. I also refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 5 November 2009, Official Report, column 1096W.
Property: Valuation
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total rateable value of properties on the 2005 Rating List was in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2008-09 and (c) 2009-10; and what the total rateable value of properties is on the draft 2010 Rating List. [304888]
Ian Pearson: The total rateable values included in the 2005 Local Rating Lists England are as follows:
As at 1 April 2007 = £47,110 million
As at 1 April 2008 = £46,771 million
As at 29 May 2009 = £46,808 million
The total rateable value included in the draft 2010 Local Rating Lists England as at the 29 May 2009 was £55,871 million.
Taxation: Business
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) small and medium-sized enterprises and (b) other enterprises which have made Time to Pay arrangements with HM Revenue and Customs to defer tax through the Business Payment Support Service HM Revenue and Customs forecasts will be unable to meet their tax liabilities in (i) January 2010, (ii) February 2010, (iii) March 2010, (iv) April 2010, (v) May 2010, (vi) June 2010, (vii) July 2010, (viii) August 2010 and (ix) September 2010; and if he will make a statement. [304409]
Mr. Timms: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) measures the Business Payment Support Service through the number and value of agreements reached, and not by the size of business.
No such forecasts have been made.
However, since the service was introduced on 24 November 2008, over 90 per cent. of the value of payments due have been paid. Where taxpayers do not meet the obligations of the Time to Pay agreement, HMRC takes appropriate recovery action to secure the tax due.
Welfare Tax Credits
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the annual additional revenue to the Exchequer that would arise from the removal of the payment of tax credits to households with incomes above £50,000. [303864]
Mr. Timms: The total annual tax credit entitlement for families earning more than £50,000 is estimated to be approximately £45 million.
This estimate is based on finalised incomes and circumstances of families benefiting from tax credits in 2007-08 which is the most recent year available. These statistics are available at:
Household income has been calculated based on income used to calculate tax credit entitlement and will therefore disregard in-year income rises of less than £25,000.
The total annual tax credits entitlement of these families will differ slightly from the additional revenue to the Exchequer of excluding them from tax credits, because of effects on over- and under-payments. Analysis of these effects is available only at disproportionate cost.
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the level of second income threshold for tax withdrawal required to reduce annual expenditure on tax credits by £400 million. [303878]
Mr. Timms: To reduce total annual tax credit expenditure by £400 million, it is estimated that the second income threshold would need to be reduced to around £31,000.
Work and Pensions
Attendance Allowance
Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people resident in (a) Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey constituency, (b) the Highlands, (c) Scotland and (d) England and Wales have received attendance allowance in each of the last five years. [304689]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information is in the tables.
| Attendance allowance cases in payment: Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey constituency | |
| May each year | Total |
| Attendance allowance cases in payment: Highlands | |
| May each year | Total |
| Attendance allowance cases in payment: by Government Office Region | ||||
| May each year | England | Wales | Scotland | Unknown/Other |
| Notes: 1. Caseload totals show the number of people in receipt of an allowance and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example, if they are in hospital. 2. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest ten. 3. The Highlands region is defined as the local authority of the claimant. The postcode of a claimant is used to assign the parliamentary constituency, local authority and government office region. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. "Unknown/Other" includes individuals whose postcode cannot be matched to a government office region and those temporarily living abroad. Source: Department for Work and Pensions Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study | ||||
Carers' Benefits
Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether people who provide full-time care for a member of their family are eligible for income support. [304688]
Jonathan Shaw: Income support is available, subject to normal means-testing rules, to people who regularly and substantially care for a family member or any other person.
In order to be eligible for income support, the carer must either be receiving carer's allowance or be providing regular and substantial care to a person who receives, or is awaiting a decision on a claim for, attendance allowance or one of the two higher care components of disability living allowance.
In addition, income support is available to people who are looking after a member of the family who is temporarily ill and to people who are temporarily looking after a child out of necessity because that child's parent or guardian is either ill or absent from home.
Council Tax Benefits
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer of 31 March 2009, Official Report, column 1160W, on social security benefits, when she expects to have the relevant information for (a) each quarter in 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10 to date. [302357]
Jim Knight: We do not intend to publish claims processing and outstanding claims data for 2008-09. We are still working to quality assure claims processing data from 2009-10 onwards. We are currently unable to say when this will be complete.
Information on the number of outstanding claims is still to be looked at as part of the programme of data quality assurance, and at this stage there is no timetable for publishing that information.
Crisis Loans
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of social fund crisis loans were alignment payments in each quarter since 2007. [302241]
Helen Goodman: The available information is given in the table.
| Alignment payment initial awards in Great Britain by quarter | ||
| Quarter | Number | Proportion of total crisis loan initial awards (percentage) |
| Source: DWP Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System | ||
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