§ Mr. Matthew TaylorTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 17 March,Official Report, column 820, if he will list the outstanding balance for the collection of the value added tax default surcharge for each year since 1988, including 1993, as a percentage of default surcharge collected.
§ Sir John CopeTable of default surcharge outstanding at 31 March as a percentage of default surcharge collected:
Cameroon; and what steps have been taken by the British director at the IMF to ensure that the structural adjustment programme does not damage health and education programmes;
(2) how the structural adjustment programme recently concluded between the International Monetary Fund and Bulgaria safeguards the poor of that country and its health and education programmes.
§ Sir John CopeThe IMF and World bank are doing valuable work to help countries such as Cameroon and Bulgaria assess the possible impact that economic reform may have on vulnerable groups, in order that reform can be tailored to meet the needs of individual countries. In their design, IMF and World bank programmes pay particular attention to ensuring that sectors such as health and education are given appropriate priority within the reforming country's budget. The needs of the sectors were explicitly addressed in the cases of Cameroon and Bulgaria. The United Kingdom executive director at the IMF, along with representatives of all the fund's members, considers each proposal for a structural adjustment programme to ensure that the programme is appropriate to the needs of the individual country.