Finance Act 1986

CHAPTER ICustoms and Excise

The rates of duty

1Tobacco products

(1)For the Table in Schedule 1 to the [1979 c. 7.] Tobacco Products Duty Act 1979 there shall be substituted—

(2)This section shall be deemed to have come into force on 21st March 1986.

2Hydrocarbon oil

(1)In section 6(1) of the [1979 c. 5.] Hydrocarbon Oil Duties Act 1979 for "£0.1794" (light oil) and "£0.1515" (heavy oil) there shall be substituted "£0.938" and "£0.1639" respectively.

(2)In subsection (1) of section 11 of that Act (rebate on heavy oil) for paragraphs (a) and (b) there shall be substituted—

“(a)in the case of fuel oil, of £0.0077 a litre less than the rate at which the duty is for the time being chargeable;

(b)in the case of gas oil, of £0.0110 a litre less than the rate at which the duty is for the time being chargeable; and

(c)in the case of heavy oil other than fuel oil and gas oil, equal to the rate at which the duty is for the time being chargeable.”

(3)For subsection (2) of section 11 of that Act (definition of types of heavy oil), there shall be substituted—

“(2)In this section—

• 'fuel oil' means heavy oil which contains in solution an amount of asphaltenes of not less than 0-5 per cent, or which contains less than 0-5 per cent, but not less than 01 per cent, of asphaltenes and has a closed flash point not exceeding 150°C; and

• 'gas oil' means heavy oil of which not more than 50 per cent, by volume distils at a temperature not exceeding 240°C and of which more than 50 per cent, by volume distils at a temperature not exceeding 340°C.”

(4)This section shall be deemed to have come into force at 6 o'clock in the evening of 18th March 1986.

3Vehicles excise duty

(1)The [1971 c. 10.] Vehicles (Excise) Act 1971 and the [1972 c. 10 (N.I.).] Vehicles (Excise) Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 shall be amended in accordance with this section.

(2)For Part II of Schedule 2 to each of the Acts of 1971 and 1972 (annual rates of duty on hackney carriages) there shall be substituted the provisions set out in Part I of Schedule 1 to this Act.

(3)In Schedule 4 to each of the Acts of 1971 and 1972 (annual rates of duty on goods vehicles)—

(a)in Part I, in sub-paragraph (2) of paragraph 6 (farmer's goods vehicle or showman's goods vehicle having a plated gross weight or a plated train weight) in paragraph (b) (weight exceeding 7-5 tonnes but not exceeding 12 tonnes) for "£135" (which applies to farmers' goods vehicles only) there shall be substituted "£155"; and

(b)in Part II, for Tables A(1), C(1) and D(1) (rates for farmers' goods vehicles having plated weight exceeding 12 tonnes) there shall be substituted the Tables set out in Part II of Schedule 1 to this Act.

(4)In section 16 of the Act of 1971, in subsection (5) (annual rates of duty for trade licences), including that subsection as set out in paragraph 12 of Part I of Schedule 7 to that Act, for "£46" and "£9" there shall be substituted respectively "£70" and "£14".

(5)In section 16 of the Act of 1972, in subsection (6) (annual rates of duty for trade licences), including that subsection as set out in paragraph 12 of Part I of Schedule 9 to that Act, for "£46" and "£9" there shall be substituted respectively "£70" and "£14".

(6)Subsections (2) and (3) above apply in relation to licences taken out after 18th March 1986; and subsections (4) and (5) above apply in relation to licences taken out after 31st December 1986.

(7)The Act of 1971 shall have effect subject to the further amendments in Part I of Schedule 2 to this Act; and the Act of 1972 shall have effect subject to the further amendments in Part II of that Schedule.

(8)The amendments made by paragraphs 4 and 9 of Schedule 2 to this Act shall not come into force until 1st January 1987; and the amendments made by paragraphs 5 and 10 of that Schedule shall not have effect with respect to the surrender of licences taken out before that date.

Other provisions

4Beer duty: minor amendments

(1)In subsection (2) of section 46 of the [1979 c. 4.] Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 (remission or repayment of duty on beer which, having been removed from entered premises, has accidentally become spoilt or otherwise unfit for use)—

(a)the word "accidentally" shall be omitted; and

(b)after the words "subject to" there shall be inserted "subsection (2A) below and to";

and at the end of that subsection there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(2A)For the purpose of determining the amount of duty to be remitted or repaid under subsection (2) above in respect of any beer, it shall be assumed that, at any material time, the worts of the beer had an original gravity of one degree less than they actually had and that duty on the beer was charged accordingly.”

(2)After section 49 of the Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 there shall be inserted the following section—

“49ADrawback allowable to brewer for sale.

(1)For the purpose of any claim for drawback by a brewer for sale in respect of duty charged on beer, duty which has been determined in accordance with regulations under section 49(1)(bb) above shall be deemed to be duty which has been paid (whether or not it is in fact paid by the time the claim is made).

(2)Subject to such conditions as the Commissioners see fit to impose, drawback allowable to a brewer for sale in respect of beer may be set against any amount to which the brewer is chargeable under section 38 above and, in relation to a brewer for sale, any reference in this Act or the Management Act to drawback payable shall be construed accordingly.”

5Warehousing regulations

Schedule 3 to this Act (which contains amendments about warehousing regulations) shall have effect.

6Betting duties and bingo duty in Northern Ireland

(1)The [1981 c. 63.] Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 (in this section referred to as "the 1981 Act") shall have effect subject to the amendments in Part I of Schedule 4 to this Act, being amendments designed to extend to Northern Ireland—

(a)the provisions of the 1981 Act relating to general betting duty and pool betting duty (in place of the provisions of Part III of the [1972 c. 11 (N.I.).] Miscellaneous Transferred Excise Duties Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 relating to those duties); and

(b)the provisions of the 1981 Act relating to bingo duty.

(2)Part II of Schedule 4 to this Act shall have effect for the purpose of making consequential amendments of certain Northern Ireland legislation; and Part III of that Schedule shall have effect for the purpose of extending to Northern Ireland certain subordinate legislation made under the 1981 Act.

(3)Schedule 4 to this Act —

(a)so far as it relates to general betting duty or pool betting duty, shall come into force on the betting commencement date, but shall not have effect in relation to duty in respect of bets made before that date; and

(b)so far as it relates to bingo duty, shall come into force on the bingo commencement date, but shall not impose any charge to duty in respect of bingo played in Northern Ireland before that date.

(4)Part III of the [1972 c. 11 (N.I.).] Miscellaneous Transferred Excise Duties Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 shall cease to have effect on the betting commencement date except in relation to duty in respect of bets made before that date.

(5)In this section and Schedule 4 to this Act—

• "the betting commencement date" means 29th September 1986 or, if later, the day appointed for the coming into operation of Part II (betting) of the [S.I. 1985/1204 (N.I. 11).] Betting, Gaming, Lotteries and Amusements (Northern Ireland) Order 1985; and

• "the bingo commencement date" means 29th September 1986 or, if later, the day appointed for the coming into operation of Chapter II of Part III (gaming on bingo club premises) of that Order.

7Betting and gaming duties: evidence by certificate, etc.

After section 29 of the [1981 c. 63.] Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 there shall be inserted the following section—

“29AEvidence by certificate, etc.

(1)A certificate of the Commissioners—

(a)that any notice required by or under this Act to be given to them had or had not been given at any date, or

(b)that any permit, licence or authority required by or under this Act had or had not been issued at any date, or

(c)that any return required by or under this Act had not been made at any date, or

(d)that any duty shown as due in any return or estimate made in pursuance of this Act had not been paid at any date,

shall be sufficient evidence of that fact until the contrary is proved.

(2)A photograph of any document furnished to the Commissioners for the purposes of this Act and certified by them to be such a photograph shall be admissible in any proceedings, whether civil or criminal, to the same extent as the document itself.

(3)Any document purporting to be a certificate under subsection (1) or (2) above shall be deemed to be such a certificate until the contrary is proved.”

8Licences under the customs and excise Acts

(1)No excise licence duty shall be chargeable on the grant after 18th March 1986 of an excise licence under any provision of the [1979 c. 4.] Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 (licensing of various activities relating to the production of alcoholic liquor) or under section 2 of the [1979 c. 6.] Matches and Mechanical Lighters Duties Act 1979 (licensing of manufacture of matches).

(2)The following enactments shall cease to have effect—

(a)sections 12(2), 18(3), 47(3), 48(2) and 75(3) of the Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 and section 2(2) of the Matches and Mechanical Lighters Duties Act 1979 (which provide for certain excise licences, the duty on which is abolished by subsection (1) above, to expire on a specified date in each year); and

(b)section 81 of the Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 (under which a licence is required for the keeping or using of a still by any person otherwise than as a distiller, rectifier or compounder).

(3)The holder of a licence under any of the enactments specified in subsection (5) below may surrender the licence to the Commissioners of Customs and Excise at any time.

(4)The Commissioners of Customs and Excise may at any time revoke a licence granted in respect of any premises under any of the enactments specified in subsection (5) below if it appears to them that the holder of the licence has ceased to carry on at those premises the activity in respect of which the licence was granted.

(5)The enactments referred to in subsections (3) and (4) above are—

(a)section 12 of the Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 (distillers),

(b)section 18 of that Act (rectifiers),

(c)section 47 of that Act (brewers),

(d)section 48 of that Act (persons using premises for adding solutions to beer),

(e)section 54 of that Act (wine producers),

(f)section 55 of that Act (made-wine producers), and

(g)section 2 of the [1979 c. 6.] Matches and Mechanical Lighters Duties Act 1979 (match manufacturers).

(6)Schedule 5 to this Act shall have effect for the purpose of supplementing the provisions of this section.