- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 17 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has estimated the funding that will be lost in matched funding from the block grant when Objective 1 transitional money ends.
Answer
It is too early to predictthe outcome of the debate on the future of the European Structural Funds forthe Highlands and Islands or anywhere else when the current programmes ceasein December 2006. The European Commission’s third cohesion report due to bepublished early next year will give an indication of the Commission’s thinkingahead of their draft regulations expected next May. Negotiations between memberstates will take place thereafter and are likely to last at least a year.
Public sectormatch funding for structural fund projects comes from the relevant domesticspending programme within the assigned budget. Whatever the future of the funds,public bodies will continue to be able to set their own priorities includingallocating money either to match fund projects they sponsor or to fund themoutright.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 17 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology used to calculate Scotland's revenues from other taxes and royalties will take into account an estimated Scottish share of the extra-regio territory in this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report.
Answer
North sea revenues do notinclude other taxes and royalties.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology for this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report will allocate Scotland's share of revenue from court fines and on-the-spot fines.
Answer
Revenues from court finesand on-the-spot fines are subsumed in the Budget under “other receipts”; theyare not shown individually. The Scottish share is allocated according to Gross ValueAdded share.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology for this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report will allocate Scotland's share of revenue from TV licenses.
Answer
The BBC receives the revenuefrom TV licensing directly (and is responsible for its administration). The BBCdoes not have shareholders and therefore does not aim to make a profit.Operating surpluses and deficits simply represent timing differences betweenincome and expenditure and are included in the position “Gross trading surplus,rents and miscellaneous. transfers” in the Government Expenditure Revenues forScotland. The Scottish share is allocated by its Gross Value Added share.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology for this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report will take into account interest on VAT paid and subsequently repaid to Scottish businesses and what the reasons are for its position on the matter.
Answer
GERS does not take into account explicitly the interest payments in relation to VAT. These are “extrareceipts” by Customs and Excise which enter into “other taxes and royalties”and are allocated by Gross Value Added share.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology for this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report will take account of business VAT payments when allocating Scotland's VAT revenue and what the reasons are for its position on the matter.
Answer
Scotland’s share of UK VAT revenue was estimated by Customsand Excise on the basis of Scotland’s share of household expenditure on those goods andservices.
The methodology by Customsand Excise is the best currently available.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology for this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report will show the allocation of Scotland's share of landfill tax revenue on information sought from local authorities and what the reasons are for its position on the matter.
Answer
The landfill tax has beenallocated on a population share basis.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology used to calculate the revenues from the remainder of gross trading surplus and rent (excluding NTCC) to Scotland will take into account an estimated Scottish share of the extra-regio territory and what the reasons are for its position on the matter.
Answer
North Sea revenues do not include gross trading surplus andrent.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive how the methodology for this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report will allocate Scotland's share of the Climate Levy.
Answer
Proportions of the levy on electricity have been calculated using the Scottish proportion of final electricity consumption (this makes the assumption that exempt categories such as households are in the same proportion in Scotland as in the UK overall). As no such data are currently available for gas and other fuels, Scottish proportion of Gross Value Added is used to allocate these parts.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 December 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Andy Kerr on 16 December 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methodology for this year's Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland report (GERS) will show the allocation of Scotland's share of insurance premium tax revenue on the basis of which company sells the policy and where that company is headquartered and what the reasons are for its position on the matter.
Answer
Scotland’s population share was used to estimate Scotland’sinsurance premium tax share.
This treatment follows theprinciple that GERS measures the tax burden that is imposed on Scottishresidents within the UK.
