To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what recent progress has been made towards merging the taxation and benefit systems; and if he will make a statement.

There are no plans to merge the tax and benefit systems. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has, however, recently set up a working group to identify options for reducing the administrative difficulties for business caused by the difference in the rules for national insurance and income tax, which he announced in his reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Colne Valley (Mr. Riddick) on 26 May 1993 at column 638.