§ Mr. Rowlandsasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the impact on the development of certain North Sea oilfields as a result of the changes to the present petroleum tax structure.
§ Mr. Peter Rees[pursuant to his reply,23 March 1981, c. 232]: I do not believe that the oil taxation changes announced in the Budget will significantly affect the development of new fields. I understand that some companies are reconsidering their plans for further development of existing fields in the light of the Budget changes. The PRT proposals are designed to remove excessive incentives to expenditure on fields, in particular, after they come into production; but I do not think they will inhibit worthwhile expenditure of this nature.