§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what was the total tax relief paid to those in receipt of private medical insurance in each year since the introduction of the scheme; how much has it cost to administer the scheme in each year; and how many people have claimed relief; [37231]
(2) what is the estimated annual cost to the Exchequer of the provision of private medical insurance as a perk to employed persons due to the tax exemption for those earning less than £8,500. [37233]
§ Mr. Jack[holding answer 19 October 1995]: Information on the total tax relief and number of people claiming the relief for private medical insurance premiums in each year since the start of the scheme, is given in the table.
Tax relief on private medical insurance contracts for individuals aged 60 or over Year Approximate number of contracts Approximate number of individuals covered Cost of tax relief (£ million) 1990–91 350,000 500,000 40 1991–92 350,000 500,000 60 1992–93 350,000 500,000 70 1993–94 375,000 550,000 80 1994–95 375,000 550,000 95 1995–961 375,000 550,000 110 1 Provisional. Changes in the scheme announced in the Finance Act 1994 included restricting the tax relief to the basic rate. This has meant that the total cost of the relief in 1994–95 and 1995–96 is lower than it would otherwise have been. Administrative costs were estimated to have been about £150,000 a year up to 1994–5 but, again as a result of the Finance Act, costs have now fallen to an estimated £50,000 in 1995–96. Information on the annual Exchequer cost of providing this relief to employees with earned income including benefits, of less than £8,500 a year is not available.
§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many meetings there have been since 1 September 1993 between the Chancellor or another Minister in the Treasury and representatives of private health insurance companies; and what was the subject matter of each meeting. [37232]
§ Mr. Jack[holding answer 19 October 1995]: Treasury Ministers have meetings with representatives of a broad range of commercial organisations from many sectors, including the private health insurance industry. Since 1 September 1993, a number of meetings with representatives from the private health insurance industry have taken place, covering a wide variety of issues.
§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimates have been made of the cost of extending private medical insurance tax relief to those policies specifically designed to cover long-term care needs. [39382]
424W
§ Mr. Jack[holding answer 26 October 1995]: It would be inappropriate for me to comment on tax matters at this stage of the Budget cycle.