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Written Answers
Wednesday, 15th May 2002.
Capital Punishment: Forums for Discussion
Lord Hylton asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether, given the length of time since this was last discussed, they will place on the agenda for future meetings of the Law Ministers of the Commonwealth the question of capital punishment.[HL3359]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Amos): We would welcome a discussion of capital punishment at Commonwealth Law Ministers meetings should the occasion arise. But we do not plan to place this issue on the agenda. My right honourable friends firmly reiterate Her Majesty's Government's opposition to the death penalty and urge states to abolish capital punishment in a range of forums, including at the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva in April this year. It is important, however, to get the message across at the right time and at the right level. Commonwealth Law Ministers meetings consider the development of law in areas where a political consensus already exists across the Commonwealth. This is not yet the case among Commonwealth countries on the issue of capital punishment.
Indonesia
Lord Hylton asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether there is any international monitoring of progress in removing the militants of Laskar Jihad from the Molucca Islands; and whether they consider that Indonesia needs help in implementing its part of the Malino agreements.[HL3987]
Baroness Amos: The British Government have consistently stressed that long-term solutions to regional conflicts in Indonesia can be achieved only through negotiation and consultation. We welcome the Malino agreements in Sulawesi and Maluku and agree on the need for firm action to restrict the activity of all Christian and Muslim extremists, including the Laskar Jihad. Her Majesty's Government are looking at ways of supporting the implementation of the Malino agreements, though this is unlikely to include international monitoring. We continue to follow developments closely, along with EU colleagues and other strategic partners including the Americans, Australians and Japanese. Rebo
Burma
Lord Hylton asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they will continue to press for the release of political prisoners detained in Burma.[HL4208]
Baroness Amos: Yes. The recent release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and the release of over 250 political prisoners from gaol since January 2001 are very welcome developments. Around 1,500 political prisoners remain in detention. Their release is central to national reconciliation in Burma and we and our EU colleagues continue to press for this.
Police Powers and Procedures
Lord Burlison asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they intend to review legislation governing police powers and procedures.[HL4377]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Rooker): We are initiating a review of the provisions of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) and the codes of practice issued under it. The review will be carried out jointly by the Home Office and the Cabinet Office. PACE and its codes are vital parts of the framework providing the police with powers they need to combat crime. We are determined however that this should be taken as an opportunity to reduce the administrative burdens on the police, and not allow them to be tied in procedural knots which prevent them bringing criminals to justice. We want to ensure that after nearly 20 years PACE is still a useful tool supporting the police and, if changes are needed, we will have no hesitation in making them. Rebo
Organic and Non-fossil Fuels: Duty
The Earl of Mar and Kellie asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the charging of duty on non-fossil fuels is compatible with or counter-productive to the non-fossil fuel obligation and the need arising from their obligation to promote the development and adoption of these alternative fuels.[HL4134]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The non-fossil fuel obligation is concerned with electricity generation rather than road fuels. The European directive on mineral oils duties structures requires organic and non-fossil fuels used as road fuels to be taxed at the same rate as the mineral oil for which they are substituting, unless the member state concerned has secured a derogation from the provisions of the directive. The Government promote the development and use of alternative fuels, including non-fossil fuels, where there are sound environmental reasons for doing so; for example, a new duty rate for biodiesel, set at 20p per litre below the rate of ultra-low sulphur petrol, will be introduced from Royal Assent to the Finance Bill.
Tax System
Lord Russell-Johnston asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the self-assessment tax system is functioning adequately.[HL4142]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: Yes. The self-assessment tax system is functioning adequately.
Over the past five years, around 90 per cent of self-assessment tax returns have been received by the due date. Under the previous system only around 50 per cent of the information needed was received by the date the Inland Revenue had to make assessments and the outstanding information had to be pursued through a complex process of estimated assessments, appeals and postponement applications.
For the tax year 2000–01 (returns due by 31 January 2002) 90.6 per cent were received on time.
The computer systems used for processing tax returns have proved to be very robust. Over the past 12 months we have averaged 99.63 per cent system availability against a target of 98.5 per cent.
The Treasury Sub-Committee is currently carrying out an inquiry into self-assessment "to examine the objectives, operation and achievements of Self Assessment". Rebo
Lord Russell-Johnston asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How many people in the last year for which statistics are available had to pay fines for late submission of tax returns under the self-assessment system.[HL4143]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The table shows the number of penalties raised by the Inland Revenue from late filing penalties on tax returns and the total of penalties paid in the last full year for which statistics are available. There is no information available about the number of people fined or the number of people who have paid fines.
| Accounts year | Penalties raised | Penalties paid |
| 2000 | 1,184,000 | 32,960,556 |
Lord Russell-Johnston asked Her Majesty's Government:
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The introduction of self-assessment was a 15-year project involving investment of £839 million for the Inland Revenue which should result in net administrative savings of £500 million by 2007–08.
Lord Russell-Johnston asked Her Majesty's Government:
By how much the self-assessment system has decreased or increased the cost of the Inland Revenue.[HL4144]
Whether the tax system deals fairly with both rich people and poor people; and whether they have studied the examination of these questions in the Guardian newspaper of 11 April.[HL4145]
15 May 2002 : Column WA44
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: Whilst recognising the right of businesses and individuals to manage their tax affairs efficiently, the Government are committed to ensuring a fairer tax system by countering abuses and contrived avoidance schemes. Each Budget since 1997 has included measures to secure the tax base and combat avoidance by blocking tax loopholes, including those used by wealthy individuals. We will continue to stop abuses of the tax system which benefit a small minority at the expense of taxpayers generally.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer in his 2002 Budget speech reiterated this commitment when he said that, "to ensure fairness for taxpayers and businesses, we must act swiftly to close tax loopholes and be vigilant against tax avoidance". He also announced that the Government are reviewing the complex rules of residence and domicile.
The Government are aware of recent press interest.
WHOIS Database
Lord Lucas asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they support the principle that the WHOIS database of web domain owners should be open to access by the general public; and, if so, what representations they have made, and to whom, with a view to it remaining so.[HL3153]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Sainsbury of Turville): We support the principle that the WHOIS database should be publicly accessible subject to the general rules governing data protection and the protection of privacy. We therefore agree with the view that, where a domain name holder is a private individual not acting for commercial purposes, the contact details of a third party could be listed in the public WHOIS database if the domain name holder wishes.
We have made a number of representations to ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers which co-ordinates the domain name system) on the need for an open WHOIS. For example, in its opinion of 16 November 2000 on new generic top level domains, the ICANN Government Advisory Committee (of which the UK is a member) said:
- "The [Government Advisory Committee] considers that ICANN's agreements with the selected Registry sponsors and operators should include . . . requirements to maintain accurate and up-to-date registration data, including a publicly available WHOIS database".
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