§ Mr. Malcolm Bruceasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will set out the estimated costs of (a) the collection of the uniform business rate and (b) the total rate reform proposals including community charge.
§ Mr. HowardThere is no reason to assume that the cost of collecting the uniform business rate will be different from the cost of collecting non-domestic rates at present. Our preliminary estimate is that the cost per person liable of collecting the community charge may be broadly similar to the cost per person liable of collecting domestic rates.
§ Mr. Malcolm Bruceasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will set out the estimated costs of collection for the community charge in terms of the cost per £ sterling of collection; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. HowardOur preliminary estimate is that the cost per person liable of collecting the community charge may be broadly similar to the cost per person liable of collecting domestic rates. The cost to an individual local authority will largely depend on how far they are successful in reducing unit costs.
§ Sir Barney Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will publish tables indicating the range of domestic rates for indicative bands of rateable values for each local authority together with the estimated amount of the comparable community charge.
§ Mr. HowardI have today placed in the Library information on rate bills in each authority of properties with rateable values of the national average—£200—half the national average and double the national average.
The amount of the community charge payable by those living in houses of those descriptions will depend on the numbers of adults living there.
§ Sir Barney Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will make it his policy to exclude the use of electoral rolls as evidence for liability to pay community charge in the legislation proposals for the reform of local government finance which he will be bringing before the House.
§ Mr. HowardThe community charges register in each area will be maintained separately from the electoral roll and will not have the same coverage. The Government do not, however, propose to deny community charge registration officers access to the electoral roll, which is a public document.
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§ Sir Barney Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many of those now estimated not to be paying domestic rates are estimated to be the spouses of, or cohabiting with, ratepayers.
§ Mr. HowardBased on data contained in the family expenditure survey, I estimate there are about 9½ million households with two adults where a rate is presently paid in whole or in part.
§ Sir Barney Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what percentage of those over 18 years of age, living in England and Wales, have been assumed not to pay the community charge in detailed comparison between domestic rates and community charge payments issued by the Government because (a) of exemption and (b) of failure to register.
§ Mr. HowardThe figures published on 29 June in column44, are based on full estimates of adult population in each area. They do not take account of any exemptions from the personal community charge, nor of failure to pay. Nor, however, do they take account of income from the standard community charge on second homes and empty properties.
§ Sir Barney Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what assumptions have been made about revaluation of non-domestic rateable values in estimating the figures for the proposed unified business rate published by the Government; and what is the estimated differences of such revaluation compared with the existing position, by whatever geographical breakdown is available.
§ Mr. HowardThe exemplifications placed in the Library in response to a question from the hon. Member for Copeland (Dr. Cunningham) on 29 June—column44—made no assumptions about the effect of the non-domestic revaluation in 1990. In broad terms, I expect that revaluation will result in relative increases in rateable value for prime shops and reductions for factories, and in relative increases in the south of England and reductions in the north and midlands.
§ Sir Barney Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what changes to the community charge proposal have been announced by the Government (a) following consultations and before the dissolution of the last Parliament and (b) since then.
§ Mr. HowardLast December my right hon. Friend placed in the Library the document entitled "Paying for Local Government: The Community Charge", which set out the Government's detailed proposals for the new system in England and Wales. We subsequently made it clear—before the election—that there will be community charge rebates for those on low incomes, and that there will be community charge exemptions in England and Wales similar to those provided for in the Abolition of Domestic Rates, Etc. Scotland Act 1987.
§ Mr. Simon Hughesasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate as to the number of people who will be taken to court per year due to nonpayment of the proposed community charges.
§ Mr. HowardThe community charge will be paid by a much larger number of people than the number who pay domestic rates. However, we do not anticipate a proportionate increase in the number of court cases for non-payment. We have published proposals for greater 721W use of reminders and for payment by instalments to become the norm. These will help to reduce the incidence of arrears.
§ Mr. Cyril Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if Her Majesty's Government have made any estimates as to the proportion of single adults on unemployment benefit who will receive community charge rebates.
§ Mr. HowardNo such estimates have been made since the Green Paper "Paying for Local Government" — Cmnd. 9714—was published in January 1986. Eligibility for community charge rebates will depend on the details of the rebate scheme, the level of the community charge and the income of the unemployed person concerned. All these matters remain to be determined.
§ Mr. Cyril Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the up-to-date community charge register will be made available to the public in computer-readable form; and whether local authorities will be empowered to sell this to non-political commercial organisations.
§ Mr. HowardThe Government have proposed that each individual will have the right to see all the information held about him or her on the community charge register; and that the general public will have the right to inspect only that part of the register that consists of a list of addresses and the names of those registered there.
We are considering whether registration officers should be authorised to sell copies of the part of the register that is available for public inspection.
§ Mr. Cyril Smithasked the Secretary of State for the Environment how long the Government estimate it will take, on average, for new non-householder residents to register with their local authority for community charge.
§ Mr. HowardRegistration for the community charge in England will begin several months before 1 April 1990. Thereafter, all those liable for the community charge will be under a duty to ensure that they are registered within one month of becoming liable.
§ Mr. Simon Hughesasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what would be the total community charge payable per resident in all boroughs and districts in England in 1987–88, assuming the full replacement of domestic rates by community charge, the implementation of the proposals in "Paying for Local Government" (Cmnd. 9714), and the payment of full community charge liability by the following percentages of those eligible (a) 95 per cent., (b) 90 per cent., (c) 85 per cent. and (d) 81 per cent., both with and without a safety net.
§ Mr. HowardThe illustrative community charge figures published on 29 June in column 44 are based on full estimates of adult population in each area. A shortfall in the number of people paying the community charge in any area would produce a proportionate increase in the illustrative personal community charge for that area.
§ Mr. Simon Hughesasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the Government's estimate as to the percentage of those eligible for the community charge who would both appear on the community charge register and pay the charge.
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§ Mr. HowardThe Government have made no such estimate. Local authorities will have every reason to ensure that those who are liable for the community charge are registered and pay.
§ Dr. Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, based on the exemplifications which he placed in the Library on 29 June, he will publish further exemplifications comparing for each local authority and class of authority in England, and for local authorities in England as a whole, the implied effects on local taxes of changes in local authority expenditure under the present system and under the proposed system of a community charge and a national non-domestic rate, set out as follows: (a) the implied change in domestic rates per household if the expenditure assumptions used in the previous exemplifications were 1 per cent. higher, (b) the implied change in community charge per household, on the same basis as above and (c) a comparison of the information under (a) and (b) above expressed in terms of absolute amounts and of percentages.
§ Mr. RidleyI will write to the hon. Member.
§ Mr. Fearnasked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many central and local government staff he estimates will be needed to administer the proposals in "Paying for Local Government" for a community charge and a unified business rate; and how many people are now needed to administer domestic and non-domestic rates.
§ Mr. HowardIt is estimated from the CIPFA "Rate Collection Statistics 1985–86 Actuals" that there are around 8,000 full-time equivalent staff employed on rate collection in local authorities in England and Wales. The Inland Revenue valuation office employs around 4,000 full-time equivalent staff on domestic and non-domestic rating.
An estimate of the number of staff required to administer the community charge and the national non-domestic rate will be provided at the appropriate time. The eventual outcome will depend on the extent of the application of new technology and the savings which can be achieved in the valuation office when domestic rates are abolished.
§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if any studies have been carried out within his Department on likely registration rates or collection rates for the proposed poll tax; and if he will place any such studies in the Library.
§ Mr. HowardI refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 13 July, at column387.
§ Ms. Quinasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will state, following his consultations with local authorities on the introduction of the poll tax, how many local authorities in England and Wales are in favour of the proposed poll tax; and if he will list those local authorities in favour.
§ Mr. HowardTwenty-seven principal councils and 14 town and parish councils in England expressed support for the community charge. I do not have the permission of those who submitted comments to publish their views. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales is responsible for the consultation arrangements in Wales.
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§ Ms. Quinasked the Secretary of State for the Environment, further to the answer of 13 July, Official Report, column 528, what studies the Government have undertaken, in addition to the analyses of the impact on house prices of the abolition of domestic rates, on the effect of house prices of the introduction of the proposed poll tax.
§ Mr. HowardAnnex E of the Green Paper "Paying for Local Government" — Cmnd. 9714 — addresses both issues. No further studies have been commissioned.
Ms. Quin asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, further to his answer of 16 July, Official Report, column 578, of the 454 local authorities and associated bodies in England and Wales which responded to the Green Paper, "Paying for Local Government," how many were in favour of the poll tax proposed by the Government; and what proportion of the total number of local authorities in England and Wales the number in favour represents.
§ Mr. HowardTwenty-seven principal councils in England, just over 6 per cent. of the total number, expressed support for the community charge, as did 14 town and parish councils and three local authority associated bodies in England. But overall, those who supported the abolition of domestic rates outnumbered those who supported their retention by 2 to 1.
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales is responsible for the consultation arrangements in Wales.