§ Mr. BarronTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will estimate the gross cost to the Exchequer in 1989–90, or the most recent available date, of all reliefs and allowances other than personal tax allowances;
(2) if he will show the proportion of tax revenues forgone in 1989–90, or the most recent available date, through tax reliefs and allowances other than personal allowances which accrued to (a) the top 1 per cent., (b) the top 5 per cent., (c) the top 10 per cent., and (d) the bottom 50 per cent. of all taxpayers.
§ Mr. Norman LamontThe total direct revenue cost of all tax reliefs and allowances other than personal
416W1 Single people and married couples.
2 Including 2.7 million tax units liable only at the reduced rate of 25 per cent. with liability of £250 million (1 per cent.)
3 Forecast.
§ Mr. BarronTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the yield in 1989–90 of an alternative minimum tax of 20 per cent. of gross income minus personal allowances for all taxpayers with incomes in excess of £22,000.
§ Mr. Norman LamontThe full year yield at 1988–89 levels of income from an alternative minimum tax of 20 per cent. of gross income less personal allowances for taxpayers with incomes over £22,000 is estimated to be £130 million. An estimate for 1989–90 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. Gordon BrownTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the proportion of gross income paid in income tax, national insurance contributions and value added tax by(a) a married man with a non-earning wife and two children and (b) a married man with an earning wife and two children at half, one, one and a half, two, three, five and 10 times national average earnings in 1988–89; and what were the comparable figures in 1979.
§ Mr. Norman Lamont[holding answer 12 April 1988]: Estimates of VAT payments are only available between three quarters and one and a half times average earnings. The available figures are shown in the table.
allowances cannot be estimated reliably. Costs of each relief are published annually in the White Paper on the Government's expenditure plans.
The proportion of the cost of reliefs other than personal allowances going to quantile groups of income tax payers can be estimated for reliefs for mortgage interest, the business expansion scheme and pension contributions by employees and the self-employed. Estimates for 1988–89 are as follows:
417W
Quantile group of taxpayers 1Per cent. Top 1 per cent. 9 Top 5 per cent. 24
Quantile group of taxpayers 1Per cent. Top 10 per cent. 36 Bottom 50 per cent. 16 1 Proportion of cost of reliefs. Estimates are provisional and subject to error.