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9 Mar 2010 : Column 272W—continued
Revenue and Customs: Hotels
Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Ruslip Northwood of 5 February 2010, Official Report, column 621W, on hotels, for what reason (a) HM Revenue and Customs and (b) the Valuation Office Agency do not use the Expotel facility to book hotel accommodation. [320902]
Mr. Timms: Neither HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) nor the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) have a contract with Expotel to arrange any travel services on their behalf.
HMRC and VOA currently contract with Carlson Wagonlit for travel management services relating to hotels, rail, air and conferencing.
Revenue and Customs: Pay
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what bonus payments were made to HM Revenue and Customs staff (a) at each grade and (b) in each Department in each of the last five financial years. [320659]
Mr. Timms: The information requested relating to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is provided in the table. Information for earlier years could be provided only at disproportionate cost, due to the work required to collate this. Data for 2009-10 have not yet been finalised.
Performance bonuses are based on performance in the previous year.
In 2007-08 bonus payments were made to top performers and good performers on the pay band range maximum, as they had received a lower consolidated pay award. In 2008-09 bonuses were paid only to top performers.
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |||
| Total bonus paid (rounded to nearest £000) | Average bonus paid (£) | Total bonus paid (rounded to nearest £000) | Average bonus paid (£) | |
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | ||||
| Total bonus paid (rounded to nearest £000 ) | Average bonus pa id (£) | Total bonus paid (rounded to nearest £000 ) | Average bonus pai d (£) | Total bonus paid (rounded to nearest £000 ) | Average bonus pa id (£) | |
| (1) Not yet finalised | ||||||
Tax Allowances
Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Ruslip Northwood of 5 February 2010, Official Report, column 622W, on Revenue and Customs, what the cost to the Exchequer has been of tax relief from the employee share scheme; whether that amount is included in the £9.6 million referred to in the answer; how many transactions have been processed under the scheme in each year; how many individual taxpayers have participated in the scheme; what consultants were used to formulate the project; and at what cost. [320909]
Mr. Timms: The estimated cost to the Exchequer of tax and national insurance contributions (NICs) relief of tax-advantaged employee share schemes and the number of individual taxpayer participants in each of the schemes are published at:
The amount of £9.6 million referred to in the answer to hon. Member for Ruislip Northwood (Mr. Hurd) of 5 February 2010, Official Report, column 622W, is not included in the estimates of the cost of tax and NICs relief, because it is a separate cost of introducing and providing the employee share schemes (ESS) online service and database. The ESS service was delivered by Capgemini under HMRC's outsourced IT contract. The numbers of transactions processed using the ESS service database per year are approximately 40,000 in 2007-08, 28,000 in 2008-09 and 23,000 to date in 2009-10.
Tax Collection
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the membership is of the group in HM Revenue and Customs advising on the implementation of the recommendations of the Calman Commission report of changes to tax collection. [321298]
Mr. Timms: The advisory group has not been formed yet. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will issue invitations to professional and employer representatives before the relevant legislation is introduced. The group will enable HMRC to consult on some of the technical and practical implications of the implementation of the proposed tax changes announced in the Government's White Paper 'Scotland's Future in the United Kingdom', available at:
Taxation: Football
Mr. Arbuthnot: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the (a) football debts and (b) other transfer fees of a football club in administration take priority over debts owned to HM Revenue and Customs; and if he will make a statement. [320990]
Mr. Timms: There is nothing in insolvency legislation that provides for football debts or other transfer fees of clubs in administration to be paid prior to other unsecured creditors such as HM Revenue and Customs.
Ensuring tax is paid on time should be at the centre of any football club's business strategy, as it should be for any other responsible enterprise.
Business, Innovation and Skills
Adult Education: Fees and Charges
Stephen Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the average fee cost was of a further education level 3 course for adults in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [320529]
Kevin Brennan: Learners aged from 19 up to 25 undertaking further education courses which will lead to their first full level 3 qualification (two A-levels or vocational equivalent) are legally entitled to have their training fully funded. This approach ensures that young adults have the opportunity to gain a full level 3 qualification, enabling them to progress into employment or further learning, including higher education.
Where a learner is outside of this entitlement and is not in receipt of income-related benefits then they or their employer is expected to contribute to the cost of their learning to reflect the benefits they will realise from this investment. For the 2010/11 academic year, the assumed level of fee contribution will be based on 50 per cent. of the national funding rate.
However, individual colleges and training organisations, as independent institutions, have the flexibility to set their own fees for each course, and data on the levels of fees collected for each course are not centrally collected. It is therefore not possible to provide an average cost of a further education level 3 course to the learner.
Stephen Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the average course fee paid by employers taking on adult apprentices was in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [320530]
Kevin Brennan: In 2008-09 academic year, the number of apprenticeship frameworks completed was 143,400, meaning that the Government's public service agreement target was met two years early. Within this group, 75,700 of these apprentices were adults, aged 19 and above. Adult apprentices are funded differently from those aged between 16 and 18, and the employer is expected to make a contribution to the cost of the course in line with the national fee assumption, which for 2010/11 academic year will be 50 per cent. of the national funding rate. Employer contributions may be in cash to the training provider or in kind through supporting the delivery of the training activity.
However, individual colleges and training organisations, as independent institutions, have the flexibility to set their own fee cost for each course, including apprenticeships, and data on the levels of fees collected for each course are not centrally collected. It is therefore not possible to provide an average fee for an adult apprenticeship.
Adult Education: Finance
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will review the equity of the allocation process for distribution of Adult Safeguarded Learning funds during the transfer of responsibility for informal learning to the Skills Funding Agency. [321375]
Kevin Brennan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 February 2010, Official Report, column 758W.
Audit: Misconduct
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what reports his Department has received of instances of malpractice by chartered accountants in company financial audits since January 2008. [321045]
Ian Lucas:
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not routinely receive reports of malpractice by chartered accountants in company financial audits. These issues are the responsibility of the Recognised Supervisory Bodies for auditors ("RSBs"), and in cases which raise important issues affecting the public interest,
the Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board ("AADB") of the Financial Reporting Council ("FRC"). The Professional Oversight Board of the FRC provides statistical information on complaints to the RSBs about statutory auditors, in its Annual Report to my Noble Friend the Secretary of State, which is presented to Parliament each year.
The RSBs are the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants; the Association of Authorised Public Accountants; the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales; The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland; and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.
Banks
Peter Luff: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 2 March 2010, Official Report, column 1105W, on banks, what recent assessment he has made of the merits of establishing a state-owned investment bank; and if he will make a statement. [321079]
Mr. McFadden: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 2 March 2010, Official Report, column reference 1105W.
Bearwood Corporate Services
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will investigate the status as a company of Bearwood Corporate Services since 2003. [321383]
Ian Lucas: Bearwood Corporate Services Ltd. is a trading company and has been since 2003. The latest accounts on file are for the year ending 30 September 2008 and the latest annual return is made up to 23 June 2009. The company is, therefore, filed up to date.
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