§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer by how much the retail prices index is expected to rise as a result of the increase in indirect taxes in the584W current Budget; and if he will disregard the effect of that increase on the rate of inflation in formulating his economic policies.
§ Mr. PortilloThe Budget measures add ¼ per cent. to the RPI excluding mortgage interest payments in 1993 compared with the autumn statement forecast, and a further ½ per cent. by the second quarter of 1994.
The Government's objective is to keep underlying inflation within a range of 1 to 4 per cent., and to bring it down to the lower part of this range by the end of this Parliament; monetary policy will be set to achieve this.