§ Mr. Lomasasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will relieve from VAT the rewiring of old properties.
§ Mr. Robert Sheldon:No. It would not be possible to justify singling out electrical rewiring work for zero rating without giving rise to unwelcome repercussive effects in other areas of the tax.
§ Sir John Gilmourasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what amount of money was repaid in the last financial year in respect of VAT on petrol; and on what proportion of total petrol sales such repayments are made.
§ Mr. Robert Sheldon:I regret that this information is not available, as persons registered for VAT are not required to make returns of the tax charged on purchases of particular goods and services. However, it has been estimated that about 35 per cent. of the VAT charged on sales of petrol is deducted by registered persons when calculating the tax due to be paid.