To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will take steps to end the entitlement of the mature student spouse of a top income tax rate payer to pay the reduced rate of 20 per cent. community charge.

Pursuant to the reply given on Tuesday 24 July at column 182, a student for the purposes of the community charge is defined by reference to the nature of the studies undertaken not the source or level of income available. The administrative cost of assessing the resources of all students and their spouses would far outweigh the increased charge revenue collected to the disadvantage of all chargepayers and taxpayers and would serve only to create new anomalies.