§ Mr. Gordon BrownTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax was remitted or written off as irrecoverable in 1979 and 1986 and what was the number of tax payers for whom the ground for non-payment was(a) that they had gone abroad or were untraceable, (b) insolvency and (c) hardship.
§ Mr. Norman LamontThe tax remitted or written off as irrecoverable amounted to £60.3 million in 1979 and £299.8 million in 1986. The number of taxpayers for whom the ground for non-payment was(a) that they had gone abroad or were untraceable, (b) insolvency and (c) hardship is as follows:
1979 1986 (a) 26,171 51,304 (b) 23,032 56,693 (c) 7,988 5,349