HC Deb 03 July 1998 vol 315 c330W
Mr. Gordon Prentice

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many businesses (i) registered and (ii) deregistered for VAT in(a) Pendle and (b) the North-West in each year since 1990. [48599]

Dawn Primarolo

Customs hold information only concerning the number of businesses registered and deregistered each year by region. The North West Regional VAT Registration Unit in Liverpool covers Merseyside, Lancashire and Greater Manchester. The number of businesses registered and deregistered since 1990 is as follows:

Year Registrations Deregistrations
1990 20,574 16,015
1991 18,644 21,484
1992 17,326 21,370
1993 16,412 20,752
1994 15,174 18,600
1995 18,699 17,154
1996 18,269 14,196
1997 20,455 15,308
1998 (to end May) 8,491 6,034