§ Sir William Clarkasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has any plans to smooth the pattern of value added tax payments.
§ Mr. Peter ReesAt present, largely through an accident of history, there are distinct peaks of VAT receipts every third month. A more even profile is desirable for the purposes of monetary management, and Customs and Excise will shortly open discussion with a number of the largest payers of VAT with a view to retiming their tax payments so as to smooth the monthly flow of receipts. Transitional arrangements will be proposed to avoid disadvantaging the companies concerned.