asked Her Majesty's Government:How much revenue would be raised if child benefit were deemed to be paid net of tax at 30 per cent. so that parents with incomes in excess of approximately £18,000 per annum became liable for higher rate tax on the grossed-up amount if they claimed the benefit.

The yield of income tax from parents liable at rates above the basic rate would be about £65 million in a full year at 1984–85 levels. This assumes that the wife's earned income allowance could not be set against the benefit and that basic rate tax on the benefit would not be repaid to parents with incomes below the income tax threshold.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much revenue would be raised if income tax relief on mortgage interest were restricted to the standard rate, currently 30 per cent.

The direct revenue yield would be about £180 million in a full year at 1984–85 levels of mortgage lending and interest rates.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the adoption of a two-line braking system in heavy lorries is as safe as the three-line system previously in operation in this country, and, if not, whether they will try to raise the EEC standard to the level formerly obtaining in this country before we joined the EC rather than vice versa.

The adoption of two-line braking system into our regulations in 1982 was only one part of the package of requirements contained in the EC Braking Directives. These directives are considerably more comprehensive than standards previously applied in the United Kingdom and result in safer braked vehicles. There is no evidence to suggest that deletion of the third line has compromised the overall benefits.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, given that at present vehicles temporarily imported from abroad (including the heaviest lorries) need only comply with the requirements of the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic, they consider the legally required standard of efficiency of lorry brakes is adequate for conditions on the roads of the United Kingdom; and, if not, what they propose to do about it.

The standards of braking efficiency applied to temporarily imported vehicles are the same as those that apply to United Kingdom registered vehicles. The Geneva Convention on Road Traffic does not prevent countries from applying their national in-service rules.