Taxation (International and Other Provisions) Bill

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read the Third time. This Bill has two themes. First, it rewrites international provisions such as double taxation relief, transfer pricing, advance pricing agreements and tax arbitrage. Secondly, it helps users of tax legislation by relocating and, where appropriate, rewriting provisions that would otherwise have been left unhelpfully in the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 or in one of the Finance Acts. As we have just discussed, last year the tax law rewrite project completed the first part of rewriting corporation tax legislation when the Corporation Tax Act 2009 was enacted. A second Corporation Tax Bill, the sixth Bill produced by the project, has just received its Third Reading. As a result, the whole of the legislation relating to corporation tax will have been rewritten. This is the seventh and final Bill produced by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs' tax law rewrite project. As with the Bills produced by the project in the past, this one continues the work to modernise our direct tax legislation so that it is clearer and easier to use. There is a further point that I want to make about the approach taken in this Bill. In rewriting the international provisions, this Bill, unlike previous rewrite Bills, does not separate them for income tax and corporation tax purposes. This different approach was agreed in consultation with users represented by the independent committees that oversee and support the work of the project. The project takes great care to ensure that the effect of the legislation remains the same, but it can encompass minor changes in the law when they improve the legislation. There are 15 such changes detailed in the explanatory notes to this Bill, although of course major changes will always be matters for a Finance Bill. All proposed changes in the law are considered by both the project's committees, and no minor changes are included in the Bill without their approval. Again, I should like to express particular thanks to the UK tax specialists, and others. My gratitude also goes to members of the project's consultative committee, chaired by Robina Dyall, who have ensured that the consultation has been detailed and thorough. The consultative committee includes representatives of small and large businesses, accountants, lawyers and other tax specialists. They have been very generous with their time and energy, for which we are very grateful. The strategy of the project is set by its steering committee, chaired by Lord Newton of Braintree, which includes members from both Houses of Parliament, the judiciary, business and consumer groups. I am particularly grateful to Lord Newton for his commitment and guidance, and to the members of his committee. As we debated previously, the Joint Committee of both Houses was chaired by the hon. Member for Chichester (Mr. Tyrie). It considered the Bill on 11 January and concluded that the Bill is a welcome clarification of the existing law, which as a result will be easier to use and more accessible to all users. The Committee was satisfied that the changes to the law were of very minor significance, and it accepted the amendments. This Bill is a worthwhile contribution to modernising our direct tax legislation so that it is clearer and easier to use. It maintains the project's excellent record in improving current legislation and has been welcomed by those who use it. Once again, I am grateful for the support that has been shown across the House throughout this work. I commend the Bill to the House.