Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will estimate what the share of the UK beer market was for products between 2.8 and 3.5 per cent alcohol by volume in each of the last three years.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The share of the UK beer market for products between 2.8% and 3.5% alcohol volume is not available.
The share of the UK beer market for products below 2.8% alcohol volume in the last three years could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will estimate what the share of the UK beer market was for products below 2.8 per cent alcohol by volume in each of the last three years.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The share of the UK beer market for products between 2.8% and 3.5% alcohol volume is not available.
The share of the UK beer market for products below 2.8% alcohol volume in the last three years could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he plans to take to ensure that importers of soft drinks from outside the UK are subject to the soft drinks industry levy.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The levy will apply to importers of sugar-sweetened soft drinks and we will consult on the appropriate compliance arrangements.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will estimate the effect of the introduction of the new soft drinks industry levy on the level of the consumer prices index.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The information on the effect of the introduction of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy on the CPI are available at page 51 of the Economic and Fiscal Outlook published by the OBR, available at:
http://cdn.budgetresponsibility.org.uk/March2016EFO.pdf
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will estimate the cost of (a) collecting and (b) enforcing the soft drinks industry levy in each of the next five years; and from which of his Department's budgets those costs will be met.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
We will consult on the appropriate compliance arrangements for the levy and will plan resource allocation in due course.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much funding he plans to allocate to (a) HM Revenue and Customs and (b) relevant regulatory bodies to ensure importers of soft drinks from outside the UK pay the soft drinks industry levy.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
We will consult on the appropriate compliance arrangements for the levy and will plan resource allocation in due course.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government's policy on the soft drinks levy will lead to a higher rate of tax per volume of product levied on some soft drinks than on some non-spirit alcoholic beverages.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The tax rates for the Soft Drinks Industry Levy have not yet been set. The levy will not capture drinks with an alcoholic content above 0.5% ABV, which cannot be purchased by children.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the aim of the Government's policy on the new soft drinks levy is to persuade manufacturers to stop selling the regular full sugar versions of their drinks products.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The aim of the soft drinks industry levy is to help tackle obesity by encouraging producers to reformulate their overall product mixes by reducing added sugar content, helping their customers to choose low-sugar and sugar-free brands, and by reducing the portion sizes for high sugar drinks.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will estimate the potential effect of the introduction of the soft drinks industry levy on the cost of the average weekly shop in real terms in each year to 2018-19.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The tax rates for the Soft Drinks Industry Levy have not yet been set. The levy has been designed to encourage producers to reformulate their overall product mixes, and it is up to the industry how they respond to it. For example, if producers reformulate, they will pay less.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, at what threshold importers of soft drinks from outside the UK would be liable for the soft drinks industry levy.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
As the Chancellor announced at Budget, the levy will not be charged to the smallest operators. We will consult on the most appropriate mechanism for achieving this.