§ Mr. Heathcoat-AmoryTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the cost to the Exchequer of allowing married couples to transfer all or part of an unused personal tax allowance, at the basic rate, to the working spouse. [28180]
§ Dawn PrimaroloThe full year cost in 1998–99 of allowing married couples to transfer their unused personal allowance to their spouse at the basic rate is estimated to be £2.9 billion.
§ Dr. Lynne JonesTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the tax allowances in force, together with their cost to the Exchequer in revenue forgone and the number of beneficiaries of each allowance in the most recent year for which figures are available. [28666]
§ Dawn PrimaroloTax allowances, expenditures and structural reliefs are listed with their estimated costs in tables 1.6, and annexes Bl and B2 ofInland Revenue Statistics 1997 published in September 1997. Estimates of the costs of the main allowances, expenditures and reliefs were updated in the Tax ready reckoner and tax reliefs in December 1997. A copy of these publications can be found in the Library.
I regret that to provide estimates for the number of beneficiaries for each allowance could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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