§ Mr. Ridleyasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made in reducing the staff of the capital taxes office from 713, to 489 by April 1979, as recommended by his Department's staff inspectors.
§ Mr. Robert SheldonThe changes in the organisation and staffing levels recommended by the inspectors are still the subject of discussions with the unions concerned.
It is, however, apparent that the staffing levels recommended by the staffing 54W inspectors need to be increased because the raising of the capital transfer tax threshold has not reduced the workload to the extent expected. Nevertheless, there has already been a substantial reduction in staff numbers; they are expected to have fallen from 713 to about 580 by 1 April next.