§ Mrs. Ann WintertonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact upon the Scottish oil industry of the Budget proposals for changes in petroleum revenue taxation.
§ Mr. DorrellTo the extent that production is within the charge to petroleum revenue tax (PRT), doubling investors' marginal share of profit should encourage investment in, and extend the life of, fields. Removing the burden of PRT from new fields will both increase after-tax costs and increase after-tax profits that would have been subject to PRT. So companies will have greater incentives to undertake commercially-viable investment. That should prove beneficial to the United Kingdom offshore industry and its onshore support, including onshore support situated in Scotland.
§ Mr. ButterfillTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much of the total exploration and appraisal relief given against PRT liabilities over the last three years was allocated to(a) wells, (b) seismic, (c) overheads, (d) insurance and (e) other expenditure.
§ Mr. DorrellI regret that the information requested is not available.