§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will tabulate Community receipts in each European Economic Community member State in total, giving the subject areas in which this spending took place in 1979 ;
(2) if he will list in the Official Report the levels of payment by each member 85W State to the budget of the European Community, and the levels of receipt by each member State, indicating the levels of payment and receipt per head of population in each member State in 1979 ;
§ Mr. Lawson: The following table shows contributions and receipts by member
Per Capita Contributions £ million Receipts £ million Contributions £ Receipts £ Belgium … 598.7 884.3 60.8 89.8 Denmark … 218.1 541.1 42.6 105.8 Germany … 2,742.3 1,940.1 44.7 31.6 France … 1,760.4 1,892.1 32.9 35.4 Ireland … 69.1 493.9 20.5 146.8 Italy … 1,099.8 1,256.0 19.3 22.1 Luxembourg … 12.2 150.6 34.1 420.7 Netherlands … 834.1 1,107.3 59.4 78.9 United Kingdom … 1,956.4 773.1 35.0 13.8 Total … 9,291.1 9,038.5 35.7 34.7
§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list in the Official Report the present sources of the European Community's own resources, namely, value added tax, external tariffs, agricultural levies and so on ;
£ million Customs duties Agricultural levies Sugar levies Community VAT Total Belgium … 217.1 148.5 20.0 213.1 598.7 Denmark … 80.4 5.2 13.6 118.9 218.1 Germany … 1,025.6 170.5 94.6 1,451.6 2,742.3 France … 487.5 62.4 98.4 1,112.1 1,760.4 Ireland … 36.9 2.3 3.0 26.9 69.1 Italy … 321.4 265.4 29.7 483.3 1,099.8 Luxembourg … 2.5 0.1 — 9.6 12.2 Netherlands … 313.9 202.5 24.5 293.2 834.1 United Kingdom … 869.2 228.3 16.9 842.0 1,956.4 Total … 3,354.5 1,085.2 300.7 4,550.7 9,291.1 Member States pay over the full amount of levies collected, in respect of trade with non-member States, which are determined within the framework of the common agricultural policy and levies resulting from the organisation of the market in sugar. They also pay over the full amount of duties collected under the common customs tariff in respect of trade with non-member countries. VAT own resources are calculated by reference to expenditure on the range of goods and services included in the harmonised base.
§ Mr. Marlowasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why it is not possible to quantify in any meaningful way by how much the net United Kingdom contribution
86WStates and shows the levels of payment and receipt per head of population in 1979. The figures are based on Commission sources and have been converted to sterling at the rate of £1 = 1.547 EUA.
I regret that a breakdown of receipts by subject areas is not available.
and what was the amount paid by each member State both in full and by each mechanism in 1979.
§ Mr. Lawson: Provisional estimates by the Commission of own resources paid by member States in 1979 are as follows :
to the European Economic Community budget would be reduced if each member country were required to finance the requirements of the common agricultural policy within its borders ; and on what the United Kingdom net contribution would then be based on the assumption that monetary compensatory amounts benefit the exporting country where Community prices are higher than world market prices.
§ Mr. Lawson: It is impossible because most of the costs of the common agricultural policy (CAP) arise from surplus disposal measures which do not necessarily take place in the countries where output exceeds consumption. A new 87W financing system of the kind that my hon. Friend envisages could well result in movements of surpluses from one country to another which cannot be predicted.
A further problem is that national financing of CAP expenditure would leave the Community with a surplus of revenue over expenditure, since the yield of customs duties and agricultural levies alone exceeds expenditure on non-agricultural Community policies. It is impossible to predict how such a surplus might be used, but the United Kingdom's net contribution would depend on the policies agreed upon.
§ Mr. Peter Bottomleyasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimates he has made of the effects on the United Kingdom contribution to the European Economic Community of changes in the exchange rate.
§ Mr. Lawson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Northampton, North (Mr. Marlow) on 6 June.
§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what was the timetable for the EEC Commission receipts and payments under the EEC budget in each month since 1 January 1978 ; and whether he expects the other countries concerned to increase their contributions in the early months of 1981 to enable the amount owing to the United Kingdom under the recently agreed formula to be repaid before 31 March 1981;
(2) what has been the timetable of payments and receipts from the EEC. under the budget financing procedures in each month since 1 January 1978 ; and whether he expects this pattern to be altered to accommodate the repayment immediately after the end of the EEC financial year of that part of the United Kingdom's contribution recently agreed.
§ Mr. Lawson: The timing of payments of own resources to the Community budget is governed by Council regulation No. 2891/77. Payments of levies and duties are made by the twentieth day of the second month following the month during which entitlement was established. Payment of GNP or VAT own resources 88W are made on the first working day of each month. Any amounts entered in the Community budget to cover payments to the United Kingdom under the recently negotiated formula will automatically increase payments of VAT own resources by member States when the budget is adopted. The incidence of receipts by member States from other budget headings will be unaffected.