§ 22. Mr. WhittingdaleTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what evidence he has that the business taxation regime has encouraged inward investment into Britain; and if he will make a statement.
§ Sir George YoungA business takes a large number of factors into account when deciding on the location of international investment, and it is difficult to isolate the role of tax or any other factor. Nevertheless, the United Kingdom has the lowest rate of tax amongst the major industrial countries. This is one of the reasons why in 1993, the UK attracted more than 40 per cent. of inward investment into the European Union from both the USA and Japan.