§ Mr. Ashdownasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is satisfied with the progress being made in the computerisation of the pay-as-you-earn (COP) project; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MooreYes. The COP project is proceeding as planned, both as regards cost and as regards timing.
As at the end of October, 6,000 visual display units had been installed in 122 tax offices. Thirty-eight of the offices had completed the transfer of their paper records to the computer. The remainder were in course of making the transfer. Further tax offices are being connected to the COP system at around 20 each month. Taxpayer records are being transferred to the computer at a rate of over 1 million each month.