Clause 16 — Rates and rebates from September 2009

Part of Bill Presented – in the House of Commons at 6:30 pm on 13 May 2009.

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Photo of John Thurso John Thurso Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Business, Innovation and Skills) 6:30, 13 May 2009

When I came into the Chamber to support my hon. Friend Mr. Reid, I did not intend to speak about the amendment, but I am brought to my feet partly by the comments of Mr. Gauke, and also to say what has happened to my paper since last year.

Let me pick up two points that Mr. Weir made. First, I want to comment on the definition of the area. The map in my paper and the area chosen are used for the Scottish Executive's definition and are available on their website. They are also used for a variety of Government definitions. If the amendment progressed to Committee, it is an accepted convention of the House that Members can work on the assumption that any paper supporting secondary legislation broadly outlines the scheme. That happens when the Government publish notes to secondary legislation that might be introduced. By producing a detailed paper, which can say far more than the limited wording of an amendment, I hoped that there would be sufficient detail to satisfy hon. Members who took an interest in those points.

The second point was the availability of rural filling stations, about which the hon. Gentleman is right. If one drives along the coast of Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, one sees many abandoned filling stations, which no longer serve fuel for many reasons. However, I deliberately chose a tight area to exclude any accusation that petrol stations that did not charge the premium might be included. I therefore acknowledge that the remedy for the injustice to those who suffer from a premium will apply only to the remoter areas. Other areas on boundaries will not benefit. I make no apology for that because I would rather get something for those most in need than try to satisfy everybody.

The hon. Member for South-West Hertfordshire and I served together on the Treasury Committee—indeed, I also served with the Exchequer Secretary. Both are reasonable Members and I will therefore try a reasoned approach. The hon. Gentleman said that our amendment was sketchy. Last year, when I wrote the paper before tabling an amendment, which was similar to the one that my hon. Friend the Member for Argyll and Bute has tabled today, I circulated it to Conservative Front Benchers, wrote to the Chancellor and raised the matter in Committee and elsewhere. The paper was deliberately framed to answer questions that had been asked on many previous occasions about lack of detail. The amendment would enable Ministers to take the appropriate action and the paper proposes a reasoned scheme for achieving that. The paper defines the area and the number of people, and touches on cost. Our paper cannot, therefore, be accused of being sketchy. Perhaps the research of the hon. Member for South-West Hertfordshire was a little sketchy.

I was grateful for the sympathy with which the Exchequer Secretary and her colleagues received my entreaties and for our interchange. Unfortunately, it resulted in the Treasury's saying no—not a wholly unexpected result. Nevertheless, I am grateful for the progress of having a good discussion. The Treasury said no for two reasons: the cross-border issue and the complexity of the administration. I believe that my hon. Friends have already addressed the cross-border issue. We are talking about reducing a premium. However, the premium will always exist; therefore, it will never make sense for anybody to drive into an area where there is a premium and pay more for their petrol. No one will be encouraged to do that. The situation is quite different in Northern Ireland, where there are two wholly separate prices. I would ask the Exchequer Secretary's officials to look into that point.

The other point is about the administration of the scheme. I believe that, without having written an entire financial accounting system, I have put forward a relatively straightforward scheme, in which the VAT system could be used to operate our proposal to ensure that any rebate given, via the wholesaler to the petrol station, would have to go to the individual motorist. I still believe that to be a sensible and viable way forward and, frankly, no more complex than many schemes run by the Government in other areas.