§ Ms HarmanTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the tax revenues raised in each of the last five years from the illegal sale of cigarettes to children. [3776]
§ Mr. Heathcoat-Amory[holding answer 4 December 1995]: Data on smoking prevalence among schoolchildren are available from surveys conducted by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys in four years since 1990. The sample size for each survey is very small, so estimates for individual years are considered unreliable. Combining the results of the four surveys gives a best estimate of the order of £100 million raised per year in excise duty and VAT from sales of cigarettes to children under 16 or smoked by such children but purchased legally by others.