§ 16. Mr. Heathcoat-AmoryTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the cost of administering and collecting income tax expressed as a percentage of the revenue raised; and what information he has on the comparable figure in the United States of America.
§ Mr. Norman LamontPrecise comparisons across all taxes are difficult. Cost incurred by United States taxpayers are higher, but the United States Government's administrative costs are lower. Research in 1986 suggested that the cost-yield ratios were broadly similar when taxpayers' costs are taken into account.
§ 17. Mr. CanavanTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the number of people who will gain as a result of the abolition of the highest rates of income tax.
§ Mr. Norman LamontNine hundred and thirty thousand single people and married couples will benefit as a result of the top rate of income tax being set at 40 per cent. for 1988–89.