§ Matthew TaylorTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what estimate he has made of the cost of holding the Government's foreign currency reserves over the past three financial years; [5397]
(2) what estimate he has made of the profit his Department has made from the Bank of England's investment of the reserves in the last 12 months (a) net of management charges and (b) gross of management charges; and if he will make a statement. [5398]
§ Ruth KellyPerformance in managing the United Kingdom's foreign currency reserves is measured for the financial years up to 2000–01 against a Public Services Agreement (PSA) target to
minimise the cost of holding the Government's foreign currency reserves, while reducing risk".The target for years up to 2000–01 was zero. For the financial years 2000–01 onwards performance will be measured against a similar Service Delivery Agreement (SDA) target, where performance will be assessed against a target of average annual cost over the preceding three years no greater than zero.Information on performance against the PSA for the financial years 1998–99 and 1999–2000 is provided in the Treasury's Departmental Report.
Information on the Bank of England's management charges in relation to the reserves is given in Note 7 of the annual accounts of the Exchange Equalisation Account for the relevant financial years.