§ Sir Ian GilmourTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish figures setting out the direct revenue costs, in the latest year for which the figures are available, including estimates for 1989–90, of the following:(a) each of the main personal income tax allowances, (b) mortgage interest relief, (c) life assurance premium relief, (d) empoyee's contributions to occupational pensions, (e) employers' contributions to occupational pensions, (f) retirement annuity premium relief, (g) relief on investment income of occupational pension funds and (h) relief from national insurance contributions in respect of minimum contribution to personal pension schemes.
§ Mr. Major[holding answer 15 November 1989]: Available information for 1989–90 is as follows.
The direct revenue cost of the main personal allowance is estimated to be £27.2 billion. The costs of mortgage interest relief and life assurance premium relief are estimated to be £7 billion and £360 million respectively. 490W The former assumes that the mortgage interest rate remains at the level in November for the remainder of 1989–90.
Estimates for the cost of allowances and reliefs at 1988–89 levels of income are given in the table. All estimates are provisional and subject to revision.
Cost of tax allowances and reliefs £ million Married man's allowance 13,100 Single person's allowance 8,700 Wife's earned income allowance 3,300 Election for separate taxation of wife's earnings 310 Age allowances 380 Mortgage interest relief1 5,500 Life assurance premium relief (where insurance contract made before 14 March 1984)1 480 Employee's contributions to occupational pensions2 1,700 Employer's contributions to occupational pensions2 3 2,600 Contributions to personal pensions (including retirement annuity premia and FSAVCS) 3 5 425 Investment income of occupational pension schemes2 3 4,400 1 Including the cost of deductions at source for non-taxpayers. 2 The total cost of tax reliefs for pension schemes cannot be calculated by adding together the costs of the individual reliefs as this would imply a considerable degree of multiple taxation. 3 On the basis that under present arrangements employers' contributions are not taxable as a benefit in kind of the employee. 4 It is not possible to provide more detailed estimates or reliable estimates of the cost of exempting investment income and lump sum payments related to retirement annuity contracts. 5 Assuming relief at the basic rate of income tax.