§ Ms PrimaroloTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the national Customs, Inland Revenue and Contributions Agency helpline will be launched; when and where he made announcements about the launch; what will be the start-up costs and running costs; if all the required new technology needed is in place; and what pilot studies have been undertaken indicating(a) the period covered, (b) the cost, (c) the numbers using the helpline and (d) if his Department has evaluated the results. [10535]
§ Mr. Jack[holding answer 22 January 1996]Our proposals for a national telephone helpline to give advice to employers on PAYE and national insurance contributions issues and to VAT traders were announced by the Deputy Prime Minister at a press conference on 19 September. The conference was held in response to the first report of the deregulation task force, chaired by the right hon. Francis Maude, and coincided with a joint press release from the Inland Revenue, Customs and Excise, the Department of Social Security and the Contributions Agency which gave more detail on the helpline. This confirmed that a helpline would be piloted in Scotland from October 1995, with the aim of extending it to cover the whole country in October 1996. A press conference hosted by officials from Inland Revenue, Customs and Excise and the CA was also held in Glasgow on the same day to give more details on the pilot.
The pilot has been running successfully since 2 October and is being closely monitored by all three Departments. The helpline has attracted more than 12,500 calls; the final cost of the pilot will be dependent on the volume of calls received over the year. The final scope and design of the national helpline is not yet settled; decisions will be made in the light of the pilot which, as well as testing systems, is also taking soundings from businesses on how helpful they are finding the service. The final costs and technological requirements will depend on the design chosen.