§ Mr. J. E. B. Hillasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the types of work now carried out in tax districts which it is proposed to transfer to the nine regional computer centres to be set up to handle the tax affairs of employees in Great Britain, showing where possible which types of work will be transferred to which centres in which years.
§ Mr. Harold LeverThe Computer Centres will eventually handle all the routine processes of the assessment of income tax, corporation tax and capital gains tax. The tax affairs of employees will be transferred to the Centres over the periods set out in the Answer I gave on 14th July to a Question by the hon. Member for Hertfordshire, South-West (Mr. Longden). The transfer of the other work will be spread over about the next 10 years.—[Vol. 787, c. 49.]
§ Mr. J. E. B. Hillasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give details of the collections which it is proposed to transfer to the nine regional computer centres to be set up to handle the tax affairs of employees in Great Britain, indicating where possible the dates on which this transfer of collections will start.
§ Mr. Harold LeverNo collections will be transferred as such. The present plans are for all the routine work of collections in receiving, banking and accounting for tax to be transferred to the centres. Some collection work will still have to be done locally. The transfer will take place progressively over about the next ten years.
§ Mr. J. E. B. Hillasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give figures to snow the rate at which he proposes to slow down recruitment in order to 494W save approximately 8.000 staff as a result of introducing the nine regional computer centres to be set up to handle the tax affairs of employees in Great Britain.
§ Mr. Harold LeverThis depends on a number of factors and it is not possible to make a reliable forecast.
§ Mr. J. E. B. Hillasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the total number of man-years at present being used for the administration of the Pay As You Earn system.
§ Mr. Harold LeverThe P.A.Y.E. system is operated by employers and the Inland Revenue. It is not of course, possible to estimate the manpower used on this work in employers' offices and as regards the Inland Revenue, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Kensington, South (Sir B. Rhys Williams) on 12th July, 1968.—[Vol. 768, c. 152.]
§ Mr. Nottasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to be in a position to sub-divide the 53,380 staff employed on income tax, surtax, corporation tax and capital gains tax amongst those categories of tax.
§ Mr. Harold LeverThe question of sub-division is being considered but it is too soon to say whether it will be possible to produce precise figures. There is a complex interrelationship between these taxes.
§ Mr. Nottasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the total cost, for a recent convenient year, of collecting income tax, surtax, corporation tax, capital gains tax, stamp duty and estate duty, respectively and if he will show the cost as a percentage of tax collected in each case.
§ Mr. Harold LeverIn 1967–68 the cost of collection of estate duty was £3,359,000, of stamp duty £1,676,000 and of taxes on income, profits and capital gains £80,129,000. being 1.00, 1.68 and l.33 per cent, respectively of the gross receipt of those taxes. The costs of individual taxes on income, profits and capital gains are not at present available.
§ Mr. Nottasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the average cost of processing each of the 11 million 495W returns for income tax purposes which were received from individuals in respect of 1967 and 1968.
§ Mr. Harold LeverA realistic estimate for this particular part of the duties of a tax office cannot be made.
§ Mr. J. E. B. Hillasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many pay-as-you-earn taxpayers were recoded during each of the last three years; and what is the average administrative cost of recoding a pay-as-you-earn taxpayer.
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many pay-as-you-earn taxpayers were recorded during each of the last three years; and what is the average administrative cost of recording a pay-as-you-earn taxpayer.
§ Mr. Harold LeverThe number of taxpayers whose P.A.Y.E. code numbers have been altered during the course of a year is not readily available and cannot be obtained without dis-proportionate effort. There are many reasons why a taxpayer may have to be re-coded and it is not possible to give a realistic estimate of the average cost of doing so.