Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 1334 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S4W-07799

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what distributional analyses and by whom underpin the conclusion that 95% of the property market would benefit from the Scottish Government's proposed revenue-neutral change to property transaction tax.

The analysis was undertaken by professional economists within the Scottish Government. The conclusion referred to relates to Scenario 2 on page 52 of the Scottish Government consultation paper Taking Forward a Scottish Land and Buildings Transaction. Under the scenario described, all residential property transactions under £326,923 (rounded to £325,000 in the consultation paper) would pay less tax than under the current Stamp Duty Land Tax rates and thresholds. According to 2007 Registers of Scotland data, there were 126,000 residential property transactions with a sale value below £326,923, out of a total of 133,000 transactions (both rounded to the nearest 1000). This represents 95% of the market. In 2009, there were 52,000 transactions below £326,923 out of a total of 55,000 transactions. This also represents 95% of the market.

Question reference: S4W-07800

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive how it calculates the revenue neutral property transaction tax scenario that “would bring benefits to about 95 per cent of the property market”; how many (a) private dwellings, (b) commercial, (c) local authority, (d) NHS and (e) non-NHS public properties would be subject to (i) higher and (ii) lower tax, and what it estimates the average difference to be.

All of the illustrative scenarios included in Annexes A to C of the Scottish Government consultation paper Taking Forward a Scottish Land and Buildings Transaction were calculated using a model developed by professional analysts within the Scottish Government and based on Registers of Scotland transaction data for 2007 and 2009.

The model applies the current slab rates to transaction data in previous years and calculates the resultant revenue. It also calculates revenue arising from applying different rates and thresholds, including progressive rates, to the same data.

The rates and thresholds illustrated in the scenarios are designed to be broadly revenue neutral compared to revenue from the existing Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) at rates current in 2007 and 2009.

The quotation from the consultation document relates to Scenario 2 on page 52 of the paper. This scenario applies only to residential property. As noted in the answer to question S4W-07799 on 20 June 2012, in this scenario, all residential property transactions under £326,923 (rounded to £325,000 in the consultation paper) would pay less tax than is due under SDLT at present. In 2007, 126,000 residential property transactions would have seen a lower tax charge, and 7,300 would have seen an increase. In 2009, the corresponding numbers were 52,000 and 3,000.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Question reference: S4W-07796

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with business and industry representatives regarding its plan to set up a separate tax collection agency, broken down by (a) organisation and representatives, (b) date of meeting or correspondence and (c) ministers involved.

Question reference: S4W-07792

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive (a) on what date and (b) how HM Revenue and Customs indicated that it would cost £22,274,000 to collect land and buildings transaction tax and landfill tax on behalf of the Scottish Government until 31 March 2020 (Official Report, c. 9909).

Question reference: S4W-07794

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish its correspondence with HM Revenue and Customs regarding the cost of collecting stamp duty land tax and landfill tax on behalf of the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S4W-07801

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive at what property value purchasers would pay more under the revenue neutral property transaction tax scenario whereby all house purchases below £180,000 are exempt and how many (a) private dwellings, (b) commercial, (c) local authority, (d) NHS and (e) non-NHS public properties would be subject to (i) higher and (ii) lower tax; what the average difference would be, and how this has been calculated.

The illustrative scenario referred to applies only to residential property. The scenario is described in page 49 of the Scottish Government consultation paper Taking Forward a Scottish Land and Buildings Transaction. Under this scenario (Scenario 1) residential property transactions above £207,692 and below £250,001 would pay more tax than under Stamp Duty Land Tax at present (due to smoothing of the current slab tax structure). Residential property sold for over £300,000 would also incur a higher tax charge. Using 2007 and 2009 Registers of Scotland data, 117,000 residential property transactions out of a total of 133,000 (to the nearest 1000) or 88% of the market would have paid less tax under Scenario 1. In 2009, the corresponding figures were 47,000 transactions out of 55,000 or 86% of the market.

Question reference: S4W-07797

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what the basis is for its figure of £16,706,000 for a separate tax collection agency to collect stamp duty land tax and landfill tax and whether this includes set-up, ongoing and future contingency and running costs.

Question reference: S4W-07802

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will bring forward details for a local income tax and whether the principles of that scheme will be the same as those of the scheme that was subject to a ruling by the Scottish Information Commissioner.

Question reference: S4W-07795

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with (a) HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and (b) trade unions regarding the future of the HMRC staff employed in Scotland as a result of the Scottish Government's plan to set up a separate tax collection agency, and who was involved in such discussions.

Question reference: S4W-07803

Asked by: Ken Macintosh, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 20 June 2012

To ask the Scottish Executive what changes it has made to the organisation of the civil service to deal with tax changes arising from the Scotland Act 2012 and whether this includes secondments from the Treasury or HM Revenue and Customs.

An additional division within the Finance Directorate of the Scottish Government was established in June 2011 to plan and implement delivery of the financial provisions of the Scotland Act 2012, including the delivery of taxes to replace Stamp Duty Land Tax and Landfill Tax. The division currently has seven staff, including a deputy director reporting to the Director General Finance and an experienced member of staff at team leader level seconded from HMRC. Projects within the programme are being overseen by a programme board chaired by Director General Finance and managed according to Project and Programme Management (PPM) principles.