§ Mr. Trotterasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) why, if no records are to be maintained by her Department of the income of individual self-employed people, those in this category who are also employed are required to notify her Department of their income for the current year and an estimate for next year if they are to avoid overpaying the new social security tax;
(2) who has access to the details of self-employed people's incomes which they are required to send to her Department in Newcastle if they are also employed and seek to avoid overpaying the new social security tax; and whether those with access to the information are under the same obligation of secrecy as employees of the Inland Revenue;
(3) for how long her Department intends to maintain the forms containing details of self-employed persons' incomes required to be sent to Newcastle; and whether she will undertake that no entries of income will be made thereupon in her Department's records and that the forms will be destroyed as secret as soon as possible.
§ Mr. O'Malley, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 25th March 1975; Vol. 889 c. 85]. circulated the following information
A self-employed earner who also has substantial earnings as an employed earner from other employment and who wishes to apply for payment of his self-employed earner's contributions to be deferred is asked to provide information about his income in order to satisfy the Department that such deferment is necessary to avoid payment of contributions in excess of the prescribed annual maximum. This information, which need only show income up to the statutory upper level for contribution liability, will not be entered in the Department's records, and the application forms will be destroyed as soon as possible under security conditions. Access to the information is limited to staff dealing with the applications who are bound by strict rules on confidentiality.
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