§ Mr. Pawseyasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the amount of revenue received from value added tax on female sanitary wear for the fiscal year 1980–81; and if he will consider excluding sanitary wear from value added tax.
§ Mr. Peter ReesBecause traders registered for VAT are not required to make returns of the VAT charged on particular goods and services this information is not available. But from other sources it is estimated that the net yield of VAT from the sale of all types of sanitary protection is a little over £10 million a year. In a broadly-based tax like VAT, many essential goods and services are taxed and it would not be appropriate to single out sanitary wear for special treatment.