§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Prime Minister whether she will publish in the Official Report the undertakings given on value added tax when the terms of our membership of the EEC were negotiated and renegotiated.
The Prime Minister: The rates and coverage of VAT in the United Kingdom were not part of the accession negotiations or "renegotiations".
§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Prime Minister whether Her Majesty's Government intend to accede to the proposal made by the European Economic Community 268W increased in order to make provision for the costs of settlement of the legal action in the case of Bourgoin SA and others and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, as announced on 23 July 1986 at column 116, to cover redundancy payments arising from decisions announced on 22 January 1985 at column 401 to reduce expenditure on advisory services, research and development and to purchase milk quota in England, Wales and Scotland for redistribution to producers in Northern Ireland.
The increases are as follows:
Commission that the United Kingdom should impose value added tax on new housing; and if she will make a statement.
§ The Prime MinisterThe Government completely and utterly reject the Commission's proposal and will defend the issue before the European Court. I would refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister of State at the Treasury in the House on 4 March 1986 at column94, and my hon. Friend the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment in reply to the Summer Adjournment debate on this subject in the House on 25 July at columns 923–26.