§ 60. Mr. M. Lindsayasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will now announce the intention of not making Purchase Tax changes in order to end the seasonal uncertainty which causes some trade to flag.
§ 62. Mr. Owenasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that traders are limiting stocks of essential consumer goods because of the uncertainty of Government policy concerning Purchase Tax; and whether he will now make a statement to assist the trader and the consumer
§ 67. Sir A. V. Harveyasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, with a view to assisting sales of textiles, he will consider announcing at an early date if it is his intention to make any alteration in the Purchase Tax on cotton goods.
§ 74. Mr. Nabarroasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what further steps he has taken since 1st January, 1959, to assess withholding of consumer purchases of manufactured articles subject to the higher rates of Purchase Tax as a result of anticipation of further Purchase Tax changes in his 1959 Budget; what further assessment he has made in the period stated of the effect upon manufacturers' orders and arresting of normal production flow; and whether he proposes to make further Purchase Tax reductions by Treasury orders prior to the Budget in order to remove harmful uncertainties in this sphere as soon as possible.
§ 80. Mr. Hurdasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will announce as soon as possible what steps he proposes to take in respect of rates of Purchase Tax so that the present uncertainty which is holding up the flow of business from factories to shops may be removed.
§ 81. Mr. Beswickasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in order to remove present trade uncertainty, what steps he proposes to take this year with regard to making Purchase Tax changes, prior to his Budget statement.
§ 84. Mr. Tilneyasked the Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware of the danger of unemployment amongst retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers of goods subject to Purchase Tax in the months preceding the Budget, about which he has received representations 136W from the hon. Member for Wavertree; and whether he will make a statement on his intentions in this matter.
§ Mr. ErrollMy right hon. Friend has considered a number of representations on this matter, and I would refer hon. Members to the answer he gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Mr. Gresham Cooke) on Monday.
§ 63. Mr. Owenasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what he estimates the yield of Purchase Tax will produce in 1958–59; and the percentage variation this represents compared with the yield for 1957–58.
§ Mr. ErrollMy right hon. Friend's Budget estimate was £490 million, approximately 1 per cent. less than the yield in 1957–58.
§ 70. Mr. Nabarroasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that a baby's chair, a baby's cot, a baby's playpen and a baby's chamber pot are not subject to Purchase Tax, whereas a baby's bath is Purchase Taxed at 15 per cent. and a baby's food dish is subject to Purchase Tax at 15 per cent.; what is the reason for this; and whether he will review the position of Purchase Tax on babies' baths and dishes at an early date, in the interests of juvenile cleanliness and nutrition.
§ Mr. ErrollThe reason is that it has never been intended that everything for babies' use should be free of Purchase Tax. All these matters are, of course, subject to review, but lacking as I do my hon. Friend's ingenuity, I can see no way of removing discrimination from the tax in accordance with the so-called Nabarro scheme and simultaneously introducing more discrimination by acceding to his many pleas for new exemptions.
§ 71. Mr. Nabarroasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that portable lighting units for indoor photography when supplied without holes drilled for camera screw and camera mounting are free from Purchase Tax, whereas this equipment if supplied with holes drilled for camera screw and camera mounting becomes subject to Purchase Tax; what is the reason for this distinction; whether he is aware of the additional labour caused to wholesalers and others by such discrimination; and, as 137W the present state of the law encourages amateur drilling of holes with consequential loss of photographic efficiency in many cases, whether he will remedy matters by appropriate revision to make portable lighting units for indoor photography, irrespective of holing, free of Purchase Tax.
§ Mr. ErrollThe tax Schedule heading in question charges cameras, lenses, and parts of and accessories to cameras. Portable lighting units designed to be attached to cameras are clearly accessories thereto. I see no reason for upsetting the existing arrangements, which are working smoothly.