Green Investment Bank
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider issuing green gilts for the purposes of providing finance for the Green Investment Bank. [68107]
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Justine Greening: As set out in Budget 2011 the Government will enable the Green Investment Bank to have borrowing powers from 2015-16 and once the target for debt to be failing as percentage of GDP has been met.
The update on the Green Investment Bank published in May this year identified a range of potential borrowing options for the GIB which the Government will be assessing in due course.
Inflation
Laura Sandys: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff in his Department work on the impact on inflation of (a) food prices and (b) energy prices. [69020]
Mr Hoban: A range of HM Treasury officials, together with colleagues in other parts of Government, work on these issues as part of their wider roles.
International Monetary Fund
Mark Reckless: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) by what percentage Britain's International Monetary Fund (IMF) subscription will change as a result of the quota changes agreed by the IMF in November 2010; [62329]
(2) what assessment he has made of the size of the UK's contribution to the International Monetary Fund compared to that of India; [62356]
(3) what comparative assessment he has made of the rate of increase of the UK's subscription to the International Monetary Fund agreed in November 2010 compared to that of (a) Germany, (b) Belgium and (c) Saudi Arabia; [62363]
(4) when his Department expects to pay the UK's increased subscription to the International Monetary Fund; [62360]
(5) how much of the increase in the Foreign Exchange Reserve will be allocated to International Monetary Fund programmes; [62359]
(6) for what reasons Britain's contribution quota to the International Monetary Fund has remained the same as that of France. [62362]
Mr Hoban: Each member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is assigned a quota allocation that broadly reflects its relative size in the global economy based on a formula. The UK's current quota share is SDR 10,739 million (£10,581 million based on the sterling-SDR exchange rate on the 31 March 2011), which represents a 4.52% share.
This represents the potential amount of financing from the UK that the IMF could call on via quota subscription, not an upfront financing commitment.
In December-2010 the IMF's Governors approved an increase in the total quota by 100% from approximately SDR 238.4 billion to approximately SDR 476.8 billion, following an agreement by world leaders at the Seoul G-20 summit. These reforms will enable the fund to meet its resource needs over the medium term, preserve the IMF's status as a quota-based institution and deliver greater quota representation to the dynamic emerging and developing countries.
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The UK's total quota share will increase by SDR 9,417 million (£9,278 million) to SDR 20,155 million (£19,858 million).
The values of all individual member countries' current shareholdings and the forthcoming shifts as a result of the 2010 reforms are available at on the IMF's website at:
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/memdir/members.aspx
The increase in the UK's subscription to the IMF will only be implemented once the overall quota increase has been approved by member countries accounting for 70% of total quotas (as of November 5, 2010) and once member countries accounting for 85% of the existing quota share have ratified the other amendments to the Articles of Agreement on the reform of the IMF's Executive Board which were also agreed in November 2010. Consistent with the UK's legislative guidelines, the Government have taken steps to domestically ratify this commitment by laying legislation in Parliament on the 13 June 2011. This process is also being undertaken by other IMF member countries. The G-20 countries have committed to completing the reforms by the Annual Meetings in October 2012.
All UK loans to the IMF are financed from the UK's Official Reserves. They remain UK assets and therefore do not count as public spending, and do not contribute to public sector net debt.
The 2011 Budget provided an additional £6 billion of sterling financing to purchase reserve assets. This will ensure the level of foreign currency reserves held is sufficient whilst meeting potential calls from the International Monetary Fund. Once the quota reforms are completed, members are initially required to deposit 25% of their quota at the fund in reserve assets. Aside from this, the amount of financing that the UK provides to the IMF will depend on the number, size and timing of IMF lending programmes and also, at a technical level, on exactly how the IMF chooses to manage the financing of these programmes.
The UK has had a long standing bilateral agreement with France to equalise their shares in the IMF. This has been mutually beneficial, and the UK and France have worked closely together to secure a number of policy objectives, for example reforming the IMF's role in low income countries.
Mark Reckless: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many gilts (1) he expects to borrow between July 2011 and 2014-15; and what proportion of these relate to the UK's International Monetary Fund commitments; [62357]
(2) have been borrowed for the purposes of increasing the Foreign Exchange Reserve since May 2010; and what proportion of these relate to the UK's International Monetary Fund commitments. [62358]
Mr Hoban: The Government do not project gilt sales beyond 2011-12. The Government publish projections for their net financing requirement, including projected financing for the official reserves, from 2012-13 to 2015-16, in Table 2A of the Debt and Reserves Management Report 2011-12
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/2011budget_debtreserves.htm
All commitments to the IMF are financed from the UK’s Official Reserves—either through sale of existing foreign exchange assets or from additional sterling financing
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through selling gilts. The Government envisage sterling financing for the Official Reserves being held on average at £6 billion a year up to and including 2014- 15. This will ensure the level of foreign currency reserves held is sufficient while meeting potential calls from the International Monetary Fund.
The UK’s IMF quota subscription does not represent an upfront financing commitment, rather is a potential amount of financing that the IMF could call on via quota subscriptions if needed.
Landfill Tax
Stephen Gilbert: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential effects on revenue from landfill tax of incinerators becoming operational in the next five years. [68301]
Justine Greening: Landfill tax forecasts are calculated using a number of waste data sources and take in to account alternative waste management treatment capacity, including incineration.
Recent OBR forecasts for UK tax receipts can be found in Table C3: Current receipts.
http://cdn.hm-treasury.gov.uk/2011budget_complete.pdf
Loans: Greece
Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of the UK's contribution to the IMF has been allocated for financial assistance to Greece. [68508]
Mr Hoban: When a country has a programme with the IMF, the UK does not lend money to that country directly. The UK lends to the IMF, and the IMF then lends money to countries with IMF programmes.
Details of the UK's relationship with the Fund, including our latest financial position, can be found at:
http://www.imf.org/external/country/GBR/index.htm
Details of the IMF's relationship with Greece can be found at:
http://www.imf.org/external/country/GRC/index.htm
Members: Correspondence
Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to Question 57980, tabled by the hon. Member for Isle of Wight on 24 May 2011 on correspondence. [63346]
Justine Greening: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave him on 11 July 2011, Official Report, column 19W.
Minimum Wage
John McDonnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff have been employed in HM Revenue and Customs' National Minimum Wage enforcement team in each year since 2005. [69189]
Mr Gauke: The number of staff employed in HMRC National Minimum Wage enforcement teams in the years requested is in the following table.
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| At April | Staff in post |
National Insurance Contributions
Gordon Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the monetary value was of (a) employer and (b) employee national insurance contributions in (i) 2008, (ii) 2009 and (iii) 2010. [68304]
Mr Gauke: A breakdown of UK national insurance contribution receipts is given in the following table.
| £ billion | ||
|
|
Class 1 employee contributions | Class 1 employer contributions |
New Businesses
Mr Umunna: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many value added tax registrations there were in each (a) parliamentary constituency and (b) ward in England in each deprivation decile in each year since 2005. [67482]
Mr Gauke: The number of value added tax registrations by parliamentary constituency can be found in the report ‘Business Start-ups and Closures: VAT Registrations and De-registrations’, published by the Department for Businesses Enterprise and Regulatory Reform in November 2008. This report was discontinued in 2008, and so registration figures are only available up to 2007.
Information is not readily available on value added tax registrations by deprivation decile at parliamentary constituency or ward level and could be estimated only at disproportionate cost.
Northern Rock
Andrew Percy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much money has been repaid to the public purse by each bank that has been lent money from the public purse since the collapse of Northern Rock. [47552]
Mr Hoban
[holding answer 18 March 2011]: During the financial crisis the previous Government oversaw a number of different interventions in the UK financial sector. Full details of financial support provided to UK banks are published by HM Treasury on a financial year basis in the HM Treasury Resource and Accounts. Some of these interventions took the form of loans. This included the Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGS), the Special Liquidity Scheme (SLS) (operated by the Bank of England), the transfer to public ownership of Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley and loans to the Financial
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Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) which allowed the transfer of deposits or pay out of compensation to depositors in the five banks that went into default in the autumn of 2008.
The overall amount of wholesale lending guaranteed under the CGS peaked at just under £140 billion in May 2009. The most recent published outstanding figure was £115 billion as of December 2010. HM Treasury does not report on individual usage of the scheme.
The Bank of England reported that exposure through the SLS peaked at £185 billion when the SLS drawdown window came to an end in January 2009. As at December 2010 the outstanding exposure was £110 billion following repayments totalling £75 billion.
At 31 March 2010 Northern Rock (Asset Management) had repaid £248 million, the outstanding loan balance stood at £23.0 billion.
HM Treasury made loans to the FSCS and as part of the HM Treasury top-up to fund the transfer of deposits or compensation payments to depositors in the five banks that went into default in autumn 2008.
At 31 March 2010 £1.2 billion had been repaid through the administration of Kaupthing, Singer & Friedlander (KSF). The outstanding loan balance in respect of KSF was £163 million under the HM Treasury liability and £1.8 billion under the FSCS liability. At 31 March 2010 £194 million had been repaid through the administration of Heritable. The outstanding loan balance in respect of Heritable was £40.5 million under the HM Treasury liability and £307.4 million in respect of the FSCS liability.
Further detail on the loans and other Government interventions can be found in the HM Treasury Resource Accounts 2009-10 available on the HM Treasury website. HM Treasury Resource Accounts for 2010-11 will be published in due course.
Occupational Pensions
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he holds on the average employer contribution rate to pensions in (a) the private and (b) the public sector in the latest period for which figures are available. [66403]
Danny Alexander: The interim report of the Independent Public Service Pensions Commission (IPSPC) estimated that of the 19 million private sector employees, there are 2.6 million active members of private sector defined benefit schemes, 1 million members of defined contribution pension schemes and 3 million individuals who are covered by employer sponsored group personal pensions or stakeholder pensions. Chart 1F of the interim report shows that around two thirds of private sector employees, or around 12 million individuals, have no employer sponsored pension provision.
The IPSPC estimate that the average employer contribution to an open defined benefit scheme in the private sector is 14.9% of pay and the average employer contribution to an open defined contribution scheme in the private is 6.4% of pay.
Employers are not currently required to contribute to group personal pensions or stakeholder pension schemes, though many choose to do so. HM Treasury does not hold information on average contribution rates to these
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schemes. From October 2012 employers will have a new duty to automatically enrol qualifying employees into a workplace pension scheme, and to make mandatory contributions.
There are 5.4 million active members in defined benefit public service pension schemes and the average employer contribution rate to these schemes is just over 15% of pay. Employer contribution levels vary from scheme to scheme and further details of contribution levels are available in Table 3.G in the final report of the Independent Public Service Pensions Commission.
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what information he holds on the average occupational pension paid to those who have worked in (a) the private sector and (b) the public sector in the latest period for which figures are available; [66405]
(2) if he will estimate the average occupational pension paid to those who have worked in (a) the private sector and (b) the public sector in the latest period for which figures are available. [66411]
Danny Alexander: The national median income across occupational pensions, provided by the employer, and private pensions, arranged by the individual, in both the public and private sectors, is around £3,900 a year, and the mean income is around £6,300(1).
The Independent Public Service Pensions Commission found that the median public service pension in payment to retired public servants is £5,600 a year and the mean £7,800 a year. The commission noted that this figure reflects the fact that many public service pensioners may have had short or interrupted careers in public service and full career pensions might be larger than this.
HM Treasury does not hold information on the average pension received by workers in the private sector. The average pension income for private sector workers will be below the national average pension income because public service pensions are higher as shown in the figures above.
(1 )Based on estimates in the Pensioners' Income Series produced by the Department for Work and Pensions.
Patents
Mr Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to his Department's Patent Box Consultation, what estimate he has made of the cost of moving from cut-off date to phase-in commencement provisions. [67858]
Mr Gauke: We expect that the move from cut-off date to phase-in commencement provisions will be achievable within the cost estimate for the Patent Box released at Budget. Final costings will be subject to Office for Budget Responsibility scrutiny and the outcome of the consultation.
Presbyterian Mutual Society
Mr Donaldson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to receive a report from the Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board on the conduct of the auditors involved with the Presbyterian Mutual Society. [61957]
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Mr Hoban [holding answer 27 June 2011]: The Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board (AADB) is an independent disciplinary body and does not submit reports on the outcome of its investigations to Ministers.
Public Sector Pensions
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many serving public sector employees are expected to retire with pensions with an annual monetary value of more than (a) £30,000, (b) £50,000, (c) £100,000 and (d) £142,500. [66401]
Danny Alexander: HM Treasury does not hold this data. This information may be available from Departments that lead on individual public service pension schemes.
Table 1.C of the interim report of the Independent Public Service Pensions Commission provides an estimate of the number of pensioners in the main public service schemes receiving at least £37,000 and at least £67,000 on a scheme by scheme basis. The table can be found on the HM Treasury webpage at:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/hutton_pensionsinterim_071010.pdf
The total number of retired public sector workers receiving pensions in payment is summarised as follows:
At least £37,000—34,252
At least £67,000—2,960.
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many public sector workers have pensions with a cash equivalent transfer value of greater than £1 million. [66402]
Danny Alexander: HM Treasury is not responsible for the calculation of cash equivalent transfer values for individual public sector workers; it would be for individual Departments to produce this information on request from the individual.
In written evidence to the Public Accounts Committee HM Treasury presented, for the committee to consider, a list of individuals in central Departments with CETVs approaching £2 million as of 31 March 2010.
This is available from the House Library and online:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmpubacc/833/833we02.htm
Individual employers' Remuneration Reports (contained within Departmental Resource Accounts) include details of the pension benefits and Cash Equivalent Transfer Values (CETVs) for each of the members of the Department's senior management team. These are available online on an employer by employer basis, but are not collated centrally.
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the potential saving to the public purse from increases to the contribution rates for public sector pensions during the Comprehensive Spending Review period. [66404]
Danny Alexander: Estimates of the savings to the Exchequer from the proposed increases to employee contribution rates for public service pensions are shown in the following table.
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|
|
Estimated annual savings (£ million) |
Savings presented in Table 2.2 of Budget 2011 represented additional savings generated on top if the previous Government’s cap and share reforms.
Revenue and Customs
Mr Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what (1) criteria he plans to use to recruit members of the Board of HM Revenue and Customs; [67740]
(2) his policy is on the number of members of the Board of HM Revenue and Customs who should be trained tax inspectors. [67739]
Mr Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs follows the Ministerial Code and Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles when recruiting new board members. All appointments follow the principle of selection based on merit and the use of an open and transparent recruitment process.
Board members must demonstrate that they are committed to, and have an understanding of, the value and importance of the Seven Principles of Public Life. They must also disclose any actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest. Any potential issues have to be discussed with the individual to establish whether and what action is needed to avoid a conflict or the perception of a conflict, taking account of advice received from the Cabinet Office Propriety and Ethics team as appropriate.
The Board of HMRC comprises of Mike Clasper as non-executive chairman, Lesley Strathie as chief executive and principal accounting officer, members of HMRC's executive committee and non-executive directors. The board is accountable for developing and approving HMRC's overall strategy and final business plans and also performs an assurance role and advises on best practice. HMRC has not set a requirement as to how many of the board should be tax professionally trained as the entire board is supported by tax professionals operating at all levels in the organisation.
Revenue and Customs: Air Travel
Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much HM Revenue and Customs spent on flights within England in 2010-11. [67841]
Mr Gauke: HMRC spent £336,992 on flights within United Kingdom 2010-11 via their contracted travel management company, Carlson Wagonlit Travel. Where HMRC staff purchased their own tickets and claimed back the cost incurred via an expense claim, the information is not available. The data on HMRC systems are not held in a way as to disaggregate flights within England from other UK flights.
HMRC is committed to reducing travel costs and the impact of its business on the environment. Staff are encouraged to consider alternatives to travel such as voice and video conferencing. Where travel is necessary, staff are asked to consider the full cost of their journey
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and to use public transport. However, it is recognised that there are occasions where some routes with budget airlines are often cheaper when compared to rail tickets purchased at short notice.
Revenue and Customs: Standards
Mr Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider the merits of engaging an external body to establish a set of standards against which HM Revenue and Customs can be held accountable. [67730]
Mr Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs is a non-ministerial department whose powers are defined in law and are subject to parliamentary and Select Committee scrutiny. The chief executive is accountable to the head of the home civil service for delivery of actions required following HMRC's Capability Review. HMRC's Charter sets out clearly what customers can expect from the department and HMRC's service standards are published in its business plan.
Royal Reserve Fund
John Robertson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) pursuant to his contribution of 14 July 2011, Official Report, columns 531-43, on the Sovereign Grant Bill, what the amount was of the Royal Reserve Fund in each year for which figures are available; [67387]
(2) how much the Royal Family has received in (a) travel grant and (b) palace grant in each of the last 10 years. [67652]
Justine Greening: Information on the Civil List Reserve and the grants in aid for Royal Travel and Maintenance of the Royal Palaces, are published in the Report of the Royal Trustees printed on 4 July 2000 (HC 644); the Report of the Royal Trustees printed on 22 June 2010 (HC 140); and the Royal Public Finances Annual Report 2010-11 printed on 4 July 2011. The Royal Trustees Reports are laid in the House Library, and the annual report is available online at:
www.royal.gov.uk
and in print from the Deputy Treasurer to The Queen, Buckingham Palace, London SW1A 1AA.
Rural Areas
Julian Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether officials of his Department have had recent discussions with the Rural Communities Policy Unit in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. [67144]
Justine Greening: Treasury officials have regular meetings with officials across the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of such meetings.
Social Security Benefits: Fraud
Mr Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many officials of HM Revenue and Customs have been assigned to the prevention of benefit fraud in each year since 2007. [67743]
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Mr Gauke: The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff deployed on both tax credit and child benefit compliance activity, which includes all aspects of compliance including fraud, is in the following table.
| Date at April | Number of staff (FTE) |
Tax Avoidance and Evasion
Mr Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many criminal prosecutions HM Revenue and Customs has brought for tax avoidance and evasion in each of the last five years; and what target has been set for such prosecutions in the period from 2011 to 2015. [67731]
Mr Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not hesitate to use its criminal investigation powers to pursue a prosecution. However, cost-effective civil settlement procedures are used in the majority of tax avoidance and evasion cases. This represents excellent value for the Exchequer, as all undeclared tax is repaid and defaulters also pay a penalty, which can be up to 100% of the tax evaded, plus interest on the undeclared tax. Every year we collect millions of pounds of evaded tax using these well-established methods.
Where cases do proceed to the criminal courts the prosecution is carried out by the relevant independent prosecuting authority. The Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service in Scotland, and the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland.
Details of the total number of cases prosecuted for income tax, corporation tax, VAT, excise and other tax offences are set out in the following table. These include prosecutions relating both to organised criminal attacks and lower level frauds.
|
|
Number |
HMRC does not set targets for the number of prosecutions achieved in each year. But as part of the reinvestment package announced in the 2010 spending review HMRC will be expected to deliver a significant year on year increase both in criminal investigations and, working in partnership with the independent prosecuting authorities, prosecutions related to lower level tax evasion and fraud.
Mr Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many officials of HM Revenue and Customs (1) at each grade are assigned to its team of investigators to identify persons hiding money offshore; [67734]
(2) have been assigned to investigation of those hiding money offshore in each year since 2007. [67735]
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Mr Gauke: Staff are employed on offshore work in a number of different ways and the exact level of resource (i.e. the proportion of time spent on offshore work) cannot be meaningfully presented from readily available data held by the various directorates of HMRC. Going forward, the Government Spending Review Report made reference to the need for a dedicated team to address the problem of tax evasion facilitated by the use of offshore financial centres. HMRC has responded to the ministerial announcement by recruiting 25 investigators to a new offshore evasion team, to be in post by the autumn, increasing to 100 by 2015. The Offshore Co-ordination Unit will provide oversight to the activities undertaken throughout the Department dedicated to tackling offshore avoidance and evasion.
Taxation: Business
Tracey Crouch: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to (a) simplify the tax system and (b) reduce regulatory burdens on small and medium-sized businesses. [68516]
Mr Gauke: The Government are committed to simplifying the tax system and reducing burdens of regulation on small business.
Already this Government have: established the Office of Tax Simplification; announced the intention to abolish 43 tax reliefs, following a review by the OTS and; asked the OTS to take forward its review of small business taxation, alongside new reviews of pensioner taxation and approved employee share schemes.
To tackle regulation this Government have: introduced one-in one-out so that no new regulatory costs are brought in without offsetting deregulation and introduced a moratorium exempting micro and start-up businesses from new domestic regulation from April 2011 to April 2014.
Tracey Crouch: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential benefits of merging income tax and employee national insurance contributions. [68517]
Mr Gauke: At Budget 2011 the Chancellor announced that the Government would consult on the operational merger of income tax and National Insurance. As part of this process, a “call for evidence” was launched on the 11 July. A link to the document is provided as follows.
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/tax_income_nics.htm
The Government will publish a consultation document on options for reform in the autumn, once all responses to the call for evidence have been received. Once the full consultation has completed, and the policy design is final or near final, the Government will publish a full assessment of the impacts in a Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN).
Taxation: Business
Mr Woodward: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average length of time was between the submission of a P35 and the refunding of any tax overpaid in each of the last five years; and what the average amount of tax repaid to each employer was where a refund was made. [69008]
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Mr Gauke: This information is not available and could be achieved only at a disproportionate cost.
Taxation: Environment Protection
Steve Baker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received on the level of green taxes levied on (a) businesses, (b) households and (c) individuals. [66506]
Justine Greening: HM Treasury receives numerous representations from businesses, households and individuals, expressing a range of views on green taxes.
Mr Marcus Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential effects of the carbon price floor on the British coal industry. [68802]
Justine Greening: The carbon price floor will drive £30-40 billion of new investment in low-carbon generation by 2030.
An assessment of the impacts of the carbon price floor, including on industry, is given in HMRC's Tax Information and Impact Note published alongside the Budget. This is available online at
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2011/tiin6111.pdf
Taxation: Foreign Workers
David Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether he has assessed the potential effect on income tax revenue of offshoring of work by private companies holding public sector contracts in the next five years; [68603]
(2) what assessment he has made of the potential effect on income tax revenue of Hewlett Packard's application to offshore elements of the Adams 2 contract. [68604]
Mr Gauke: Neither HM Treasury nor HM Revenue and Customs hold the detailed information required to provide a reliable estimate of the effect on income tax revenues of offshoring of work by private companies holding public sector contracts.
Taxation: Overpayments
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason HM Revenue and Customs has reduced to four years the period in respect of which persons may reclaim overpayment of tax. [61617]
Mr Gauke: The Finance Act 2008 reduced the relevant time limit for claims and assessments from six years to four years as part of a wider alignment of time limits across all the taxes which aimed to simplify the system and reduce customer burdens. This was part of the work of HMRC's review of powers, deterrents and safeguards intended to modernise and align the various powers of ex-Customs and Excise and Inland Revenue.
Taxation: Self-assessment
Jon Ashworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of 2010-11 tax returns that have been lost. [67839]
Mr Gauke: Information on the number of tax returns is not recorded centrally.
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HMRC has a rigorous system in place including tracking measures in order to minimise the risk of losses.
Thameslink: Rolling Stock
Margaret Beckett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he was first informed of the decision by the Secretary of State for Transport to award the preferred bidder status for the Thameslink Rolling Stock Project to Siemens. [68842]
Danny Alexander: I was informed of the Secretary of State for Transport's decision to award preferred bidder status for the Thameslink Rolling Stock procurement to Siemens on 18 May.
Unpaid Taxes
Mr Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate HM Revenue and Customs made of the revenue lost to the Exchequer from written-off or remitted tax debt in 2010-11. [67742]
Mr Gauke: The amount of revenue remitted or written-off in 2010-11 by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is set out in Table 9.2 on page 152 of HMRCs 2010-11 Annual Accounts.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/about/annual-report-accounts-1011.pdf
VAT: EU Budget
Mrs Main: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on proposals to increase the proportion of VAT receipts allocated to the EU budget. [68774]
Justine Greening: The UK currently does not pay any of its VAT receipts to the EU. VAT-based contributions to the EU budget are calculated on the basis of a notional harmonised rate, using an identical range of goods and services in each member state.
The UK does not support the Commission's proposed revision of the VAT-based resource.
Negotiations on the proposal have yet to start but under article 311 of the EU treaty, a change to the way in which the EU is funded would have to be unanimously agreed by all member states and ratified by national Parliaments.
VAT: Football
Ian Austin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what discussions he has had with (a) Sport England, (b) the Football Association and (c) the Fitness Industry Association on the proposed change in VAT status for five-a-side league football; [68573]
(2) what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport on the proposed change in the taxation status of five-a-side football from supply of land to providing a league service and the associated change in VAT status; and if he will make a statement; [68574]
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(3) whether he has made an assessment of the effects of the proposed change in VAT status for five-a-side league football on levels of participation in five-a-side football (a) nationally, (b) in the West Midlands and (c) in Dudley borough. [68576]
Mr Gauke: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol North West (Charlotte Leslie) on 24 May 2011, Official Report, column 512W.
VAT: Housing
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the merits of setting a reduced rate of value added tax for all domestic repair, maintenance and improvement projects that include sufficient energy efficiency improvements. [68113]
Mr Gauke: We keep the merits of applying a reduced rate of VAT to all domestic repairs, maintenance and improvement projects under review; including the significant costs and practical difficulties in applying such a relief.
The Green Deal, a DECC-led initiative, has been designed to help make energy efficient technology more affordable. The Green Deal will enable households and businesses to improve their energy efficiency at no upfront cost repaying the investment through the savings they can expect to make on their energy bills.
VAT: Sports
Ian Austin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential effects of removing VAT from sporting and physical activity provision on levels of (a) participation and (b) public health; and if he will make a statement. [68577]
Mr Gauke: No assessment has been made.
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VAT: Tax Rates and Bands
Mrs Main: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had on the potential effects on the economy of an increase in the rate of VAT. [68785]
Mr Gauke: The Chancellor's, tax proposals, and forecasts of their effects on the economy, are set out in the Budget documentation.
Vulture Funds
Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with his (a) US and (b) French counterparts on steps to prevent vulture funds from those countries from suing for excessive claims in courts outside UK jurisdiction. [68883]
Mr Gauke: The Debt Relief (Developing Countries) Act 2010 was made permanent on 25 May 2011.
The UK has shared information regarding this Act with the Paris Club, which includes the US and France. The UK will continue to share its experience of addressing non-participation in debt relief with all members of the Paris Club.
Welfare Tax Credits
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax credit expenditure was spent on (a) working and (b) non-working people in each year since the introduction of tax credits; to what tax credits this expenditure related; and if he will make a statement. [68127]
Mr Gauke: The latest information on entitlement to tax credits for in-work and out-of-work families is available in table 1.1 of the annual HMRC publication “Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Finalised Annual Awards 2009-10”. This can be found at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-final-awards-may11.pdf