To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what evidence he has received on the usefulness of including dates of birth in helping assessors establish the community charge liability of individuals.

The requirement in section 13(1)(d) of the Abolition of Domestic Rates Etc. (Scotland) Act 1987 that dates of birth are to be included in the community charges register was added to the Bill as a result of representations made by local authority practitioners on the desirability of the provision being included and the information is being included in local authority systems as an aid to identification.