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22 Feb 2010 : Column 227W—continued
The information is based on the Survey of Personal Incomes, of which 2006-07 is the latest available. Information for 2008-09 and 2009-10 will be published during 2011 and 2012 respectively.
Income Tax: Tax Allowances
Ms Gisela Stuart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the likely cost to the public purse of increasing the personal allowance by £2,000, limited to the basic rate of income tax, in respect of (a) all married couples and couples in civil partnerships, (b) all married couples and couples in civil partnerships with children under the age of (i) three and (ii) six and (c) all those aged 65 years and over in each fiscal year from 2010-11 to 2013-14. [313286]
Mr. Timms [holding answer 28 January 2010]: Due to the complex nature of these questions the following estimates should be treated with caution. These estimates exclude any behavioural response to the change, which could be significant given the magnitude of the change. This has the additional implication of limiting reliable modelling of costs to 2010-11.
The estimated costs of increasing the personal allowance by £2,000 per person, limited to the basic rate of income tax, are:
(a) £5.9 billion for all married couples and civil partnerships;
(b) (i) £0.6 billion for all married couples and civil partnerships with children under the age of three;
(ii) £1.0 billion for all married couples and civil partnerships with children under the age of six.
These estimates have been calculated using HM Treasury's tax and benefit micro-simulation model using Family Resources Survey 2007-08 data.
The estimates of increasing the personal allowance for those aged 65 and over can be approximated from table 1.6 "Direct effects of illustrative tax changes" available at:
Landfill Tax
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much is expected to be raised through landfill tax in 2010-11; [316624]
(2) whether he plans to review the criteria under which projects can apply for funding under the landfill tax credit scheme; [316625]
(3) how many applications from each constituency have been (a) received and (b) granted for funding under the landfill tax credit scheme in each year since 1996; and how much funding has been provided to successful applicants in each constituency in each of those years. [316626]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Estimates of landfill tax revenues are set out in chapter A, table A1, of the 2009 Budget publication "Building Britain's Future".
There are no plans for a specific review of the objects of the landfill communities fund (known as the landfill tax credit scheme up to 2006). However, the fund (including its qualifying objects) is kept under regular review as part of the Budget process.
Neither HM Revenue and Customs, nor the fund regulator, ENTRUST, hold information on applications or funding broken down by parliamentary constituency.
Loans
Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the (a) number of self-certification loans made in each year since 2004 and (b) total stock of self-certification loans which is outstanding. [318012]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury does not hold data on mortgage product sales by type. However, the FSA's 'Mortgage Market Review' includes some information on the proportion of regulated mortgage sales in 2007 that did not involve income verification. This is available in Exhibit 2.7 of the publication, which is available at the following link:
Members: Correspondence
John Barrett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the MP's Parliamentary Business Unit of the Tax Credit Office expects to answer the hon. Member for Edinburgh West's faxed correspondence of 17 December 2009 on his constituent Mrs L A McKinnon. [316954]
Mr. Timms: HM Revenue and Customs wrote to the hon. Member about his constituent on 16 February 2010 and sincerely apologise for the delay in doing so.
Money Laundering
Tony Baldry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what reports he has received of allegations that North Korea is using Luxembourg as a channel for money laundering; and if he will request the Government of Luxembourg to investigate the allegations. [316823]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government are not able to comment on matters of intelligence. However the Government play a leading role in international efforts against money laundering, including the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the EU Committee for the Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Finance.
It should also be noted that in 2009 the UK signed up to further sanctions against North Korea under UN Resolution 1874, placing restrictions on financial institutions providing services to North Korea and requiring enhanced vigilance by member states. While aimed at reducing the threat from the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, such measures also serve to strengthen international anti-money laundering controls.
Mortgages
Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of non-deposit taking mortgage lenders in each year since 2004. [318011]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Bank of England collects data on the volume of mortgage lending by different types of lenders, including specialist lenders. These are published in 'Monetary and Financial Statistics (Bankstats)'. Figures from the latest publication, which covers the period December 2007 to December 2009, are available at
The full set of figures is accessible through the Bank's statistical database, at
National Insurance Contributions: Registration
Mr. Binley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many self-employed people were late in registering their national insurance contributions with HM Revenue and Customs in the last two years. [316859]
Mr. Timms: Individuals starting self-employment have a legal obligation to notify HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) of their liability to pay Class 2 National Insurance Contributions (NICs).
23,258 and 23,991 self-employed individuals were late in notifying HMRC of their liability to pay Class 2 NICs during 2008 and 2009 respectively. Late is defined as more than three months from the date self-employment commenced.
PAYE
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether an individual's PAYE case is automatically cleared when HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not receive back an employment history enquiry; and how many PAYE cases were cleared after HMRC received back an employment history enquiry from individuals in (a) 2006, (b) 2007, (c) 2008 and (d) 2009. [316119]
Mr. Timms: Pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) aims to collect the right amount of tax each year through the PAYE tax code, which is based on the latest information available to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Where an individual's employment history appears incomplete HMRC will ask the customer for their employment history either during or at the end of the tax year. If the individual does not respond then the tax code will continue to be based on the most current information available and the case cleared at the end of the tax year.
Customers are encouraged to use the information provided on HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) website at:
to help them understand their PAYE tax code. If customers have concerns or believe they are being wrongly taxed, they should contact their tax office, which will be able to make any appropriate adjustments irrespective of whether the case has been cleared.
Information on how to find your tax office is available at:
The information requested is not available, as HM Revenue and Customs' systems do not capture details of the number of PAYE cases cleared following receipt of a completed employment history inquiry form.
Pension Credit: Northern Ireland
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many pensioners resident in Northern Ireland have been contacted as part of his Department's pension credit Tax Back campaign. [316362]
Angela Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested is not available. I can confirm however, that for the United Kingdom as a whole, around 3.4 million letters were issued.
Public Sector: Contracts
Caroline Flint: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether a Minister or official in his Department has responsibility for promoting Article 19 of the European Union Procurement Directive in respect of the awarding of public sector contracts to work places in which more than 50 per cent. of employees are disabled. [317586]
Ian Pearson: The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has responsibility for public procurement law and policy in the UK.
Government are fully committed to ensuring that people with disabilities are given the opportunity to enter the labour market, as well as ensuring that there is a level playing field for all companies, including supported businesses, seeking to do business with the public sector.
Article 19 of the EU procurement directive has a role to play in facilitating public sector contracting opportunities for supported businesses. Last year, the OGC published practical guidance for public procurers on the provision contained within Article 19, including how to reserve contracts for supported factories and businesses while still ensuring that value for money is achieved.
Buying Solutions, OGC's executive agency and national procurement partner for UK public services, has made use of the Article 19 provision to set up a pan Government collaborative framework agreement with supported businesses.
Central Departments, including HM Treasury, each have supported businesses champions at official level. Their role will include raising awareness of the Article 19 provision within their Departments.
OGC is working with DWP and key stakeholders to raise awareness of the Article 19 provision and to encourage Departments to use it where appropriate.
Resource Accounting and Budgeting
Dr. Murrison: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes have been made to his Department's guidance on resource account budgeting since 2003; and if he will make a statement. [316085]
Mr. Byrne: The introduction of Stage 2 of Resource Accounting and Budgeting in 2003 moved non-cash items from AME (Annual Managed Expenditure) to DEL (Departmental Expenditure Limits).
The 2006-07 Consolidated Budgeting Guidance formalised existing restrictions on switching between non-cash and near-cash items by introducing a near-cash control total.
In 2006-07, capital grants were also moved from resource DEL to capital DEL, eliminating the need to ring fence them within resource DEL.
The 2009-10 Consolidate Budgeting Guidance made a number of smaller changes to align the budgeting system with International Financial Reporting Standards which have been adopted for departmental resource accounting purposes.
Copies of past editions of the budgeting guidance are available in the Library, and the present edition is available on the Treasury website.
Revenue and Customs
Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the costs, including redundancy payments, and the benefits, including increased tax yield and transaction savings, have been of HM Revenue and Customs' transformation programme in each year from 2006-07; and what the net change in the number of staff employed has been in each year. [313699]
Mr. Timms [holding answer 28 January 2010]: HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) major transformation initiatives are delivered through the Departmental Transformation Programme (DTP), established in October 2006. The transformation programme has led to improved customer service, such as reduced administrative burden, faster responses to customer queries and an expansion in our online services to individuals and businesses.
The information requested is provided in the following table:
| £ million | |||
| Transformation costs( 1) | Additional tax yield | Transaction savings( 2) | |
| (1 )Transformation costs include the cost of voluntary staff releases made as part of the Workforce Change programme, when it was part of the Departmental Transformation Programme in 2008-09. (2 )Transaction savings are defined as non-paybill savings in operational costs achieved through efficiencies, or improvements to our processes. (3 )2009-10 figures are forecast for the year, rather than actuals to date. | |||
Transformation is expected to have long-term benefit, resulting in tax yield benefits continuing to accrue in future years.
The information requested is provided in the following table:
| Headcount | Head count year-on-year change | Head count change to date | Full-time equivalent (FTE) | FTE year-on-year change | FTE change to date | |
| (1 )Figures for 2009-10 include the transfer of 4,803 staff (4,628 FTE) from HMRC to the UK Border Agency. Note: These figures relate to headcount and FTE numbers on the 1 April each year, except the current year where the figures are based on figures at 1 January 2010. | ||||||
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