§ Mr. Carmichaelasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer which customs and excise duties are specific and which are ad valorem; what have been their fiscal yield in the years 1970–71 to 1977–78; and what is his estimate of the yield from those items subject to specific taxes if they were changed to ad valorem in the current year.
§ Mr. Robert SheldonFollowing is the information.
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THE NET REVENUES OF THE CUSTOMS AND EXCISE DUTIES IN THE PERIOD 1970–71 TO 1976–77, WITH ESTIMATES FOR 1977–78, WERE (£ million) 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 Estimate Specific duties— Oil … … … … … 1,394.4 1,443.0 1,555.2 1,586.7 1,549.1 1,541.9 2,067.3 2,400 Tobacco … … … … 1,142.5 1,125.3 1,184.7 1,086.5 1,339.5 1,679.3 1,874.9* 2,150* Spirits … … … … 371.5 409.3 459.0 494.4 554.8 699.4 868.7 850 Beer … … … … … 467.0 482.8 491.7 365.1 450.6 652.4 808.3 885 Wine … … … … … 74.9 87.3 103.1 80.7 105.7 181.6 226.7 260 British Wine/Made Wine … … 17.9 19.1 20.8 13.9 23.2 29.6 37.9 45 Cider and Perry … … … — — — — — — 4.0 10 Matches and mechanical lighters … 10.8 11.1 11.1 8.9 8.7 8.1 7.9 10 Betting and Gaming … … 10.0 10.5 10.6 10.8 13.1 13.5 14.2 15 Ad valorem duties— Purchase Tax … … … 1,271.8 1,430.0 1,389.1 379.9 1.2 1.3 0.8 — VAT … … … … … — — — 1,470.7 2,509.5 3,454.9 3,769.5 4,250 Car Tax … … … … — — — 117.9 122.3 180.0 218.0 250 Protective Duties … … … 259.8 277.1 348.8 437.5 501.0 513.3 675.8 695 Betting and Gaming … … 120.4 145.9 160.8 174.7 225.5 251.4 270.1 300 No estimate can be given of the yield from specific duties if converted to ad valorem duties, since this would depend on the duty rates chosen, and on establishing a firm valuation base for duty, which would raise considerable difficulties. * These figures include revenue from ad valorem duty which has applied to cigarettes since May 1976 in addition to the specific duty on tobacco, figures for which are not separately available.