Former MP for Orkney and Shetland
Will the Secretary of State say whether the estimate that has been given that one new oilfield will be opened every six weeks in the North Sea is the official Government estimate?
Does the Secretary of State subscribe to the view that if the Finance Bill is passed and there is no general election, one new oil field may be opened up every six weeks? That is a Government estimate, I would add, before the right hon. Gentleman puts his foot in it, which I would not want him to do as he is a very decent chap. It that happens, what effect will it have on the ordering of...
As the terminals at Flotta and Sullom Voe are in my constituency, the taxation of oil is of considerable importance to my constituency and to the country. The taxation of oil revenues is a highly complicated subject and, as with the rest of our taxation, it is not becoming less complicated. In addition, in many ways the activities of Governments are contradictory. It is only recently that a...
I rise to press the Government upon a matter that has already been raised by my hon. Friend the Member for Colne Valley (Mr. Wainwright) — the effect of the amendment and of capital transfer tax in general upon employers or owners of companies who wish to make over their companies to their employees. The Government have introduced into the Finance Bill the concept of employee-controlled...
The Financial Secretary will remember that, in the case of Mr. Baxendale, advantage had to be taken of last year's Finance Bill for the company to buy back its shares and to cancel some of them. I understand that capital transfer tax began to operate at that stage. Can the right hon. Gentleman clear up that matter?
Is the Minister aware that the division betwen the pig farmers on good land and the smaller farmers in less favourable circumstances is growing more apparent? The difficulty for my farmers and many others is that they are heavily in debt. The only hope for them is to increase their net income either by reducing costs or by increasing their gross income. Can the right hon. Gentleman give us...
Will the Secretary of State say a further word about history? I take it that there is no intention of downgrading the teaching of history, and that it will still be an important part of secondary education. Also, there is the matter of writing essays. Some teachers are worried that it is to be discounted.
Will the Prime Minister find time today to order an inquiry into the price of petrol in this country? It cannot be in accordance with market economics, which her Government follow, that when the price of oil goes down the petrol companies propose to increase the price of petrol?
